There are two key texts that drive the discourse of pesukei d’zimra as preparation for the עמידה:

בבלי ברכות ל״ב ע״א] דָּרַשׁ רַבִּי שִׂמְלַאי: לְעוֹלָם יְסַדֵּר אָדָם שִׁבְחוֹ שֶׁל הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא, וְאַחַר כָּךְ יִתְפַּלֵּל.

1) Bavli Berachot 32a] R. Simlai darshened, “A person should always first organize praise of the Holy Blessed One and only afterward pray [with petitions].”

משנה ברכות פ״ה מ״א] אֵין עוֹמְדִין לְהִתְפַּלֵּל אֶלָּא מִתּוֹךְ כֹּבֶד רֹאשׁ. חֲסִידִים הָרִאשׁוֹנִים הָיוּ שׁוֹהִים שָׁעָה אַחַת וּמִתְפַּלְּלִים, כְּדֵי שֶׁיְּכַוְּנוּ אֶת לִבָּם לַמָּקוֹם.

2) Mishna Berachot 5:1] We do not rise to pray except from a place of solemnity. The ancient pious one used to pause for an hour and then Pray in order to be able to intend their hearts to the Omnipresent One.

Both of these sources refer particularly to the amida. The statement of R. Simlai teaches us about the internal structure of the amida¹. However, many view R. Simlai’s structure of שבח (praise) preceding בקשה (petition) as a broad outline for shacharit. In addition, the Mishna at the beginning of the fifth chapter of Berachot has two themes: 1) The notion of כֹּבֶד רֹאשׁ (solemnity) as the proper mind-set for prayer, & 2) The practice of the “ancient pious” ones who used to pause (שׁוֹהִים) before Prayer. This Mishna, and the beraytot that follow in the gemara on page 31b, refer to the amida in particular. However, we will encounter a large cadre of rishonim who expand the Mishna to include pesukei d’zimra as preparation to stand before God.

These texts give us three different modes of preparation that take place prior to pesukei d’zimra. First, we learn about “praise before petition.” Then we unpack the three different outlooks with which the gemara tells us to rise to prayer: solemnity, settled law, and the joy of a Mitzvah. Finally, the ancient pious ones practice of waiting in anticipation of the amida is linked to pesukei d’zimra.

Praise before Petition – שבח לפני בקשה

The majority position goes all the way back to a teshuva of Rav Natronai Gaon (Sura, second half of the 9th century) quoted by Rav Amram Gaon (Gaon of Sura following Rav Natronai) in his earliest edition of the siddur. The question that Rav Natronai Gaon answered dealt with a case in which someone came late to shul and wanted to know how to catch up to the community that was already davening. In his presentation of the answer, Rav Natronai gives one of the earliest articulations of the nature of the establishment of pesukei d’zimra:

כשתקנו חז”ל כך תקנו לומר פסוקי דזמרא ואחר כך להתפלל. דדרש ר’ שמלאי לעולם יסדר אדם שבחו של הקדוש ברוך הוא ואחר כך יתפלל…אבל לומר פסוקי דזמרא אחר תפלה, יש גנאי בדבר לומר שבח אחר תפלה…

When the Rabbis ob”m instituted the recitation of pesukei d’zimra they instituted that after its recitation then we pray [the amida]. R. Simlai explained, “A person should always organize praise of the Holy Blessed One and the pray [the amida]…But there is something degrading about reciting pesukei d’zimra after the amida, to recite praise after [the petitions] of prayer.

Rav Natronai sees R. Simlai creating the structure of the entire shacharit prayer and not simply the model of the opening three blessings of praise of the amida. This reading of the Talmudic passage is not at all obvious and contradicts the subsequent approaches of both Rashi’s Talmudic commentary and Rambam’s approach to the very same text. Nonetheless, many rishonim follow his lead, and this teshuva is quoted extensively all the way up to and including the Tur and the Shulchan Aruch².

When seen through this lens, the main emotional posture of pesukei d’zimra is meant to be one of praise. While many of the verses that appear in this section align with that outlook, it doesn’t cover every individual phrase³. The idea of needing to praise God before making requests establishes a particular hierarchy between the Master of the World and human beings. This worldview is helpful in cultivating a prayerful personality, reminding us that God is ultimately in control and that we need to articulate our needs before the Creator of the World. 

We have seen two very similar ideas in these two apparently disparate notions of pesukei d’zimra. First, we encountered it as a kind of Hallel (Shabbat 118b, R. Yosi). Then we saw it as the praise that precedes the petition of the amida (Berachot 32b, R. Simlai). Since Hallel is itself a form of praise, the approaches of R. Yose and R. Simlai overlap and, in some ways, mirror each other. Next time, however, we will see a different approach.

1. See Rashi in Avoda Zara 7b s.v. yisader shevacho and Rambam Hilkhot Tefila 1:2, with the commentary of the Kesef Mishneh and the Lechem Mishna there, all of whom quote R. Simlai.
2. See also רי”ף in Berachot page 23a (of the Rif’s pagination) where he brings together the gemara in Shabbat 118b about pesukei d’zimra and the statement on R. Simlai from Berachot 32a. מחזור ויטרי in the beginning, סימן א and the טור in או”ח סימן נא. For an interesting approach to this question see also the שבלי הלקט in ענין .תפילה חלק ז
3. A similar theme of praise before petition appears as well in the name of the Amoraim R. Yehuda and R. Chanina in the gemara in Berachot 34a who imagine the relationship between the one praying and God as one of a slave and their master. The first berachot of the amida are praise (שבח), the middle blessings (during the week) are like the servant making a request before their master and the concluding three blessings are thanks. This outline appears in the Rambam Hilkhot Tefila 1:4 & 6:3, as well as in the Shulchan Aruch Orach Chayyim 112:1.