From the laws of the recitation of Shema itself, the mishna proceeds to discuss the blessings recited in conjunction with Shema. Here, the order is established: In the morning when reciting Shema, one recites two blessings beforehand, the first on the radiant lights and the second the blessing on the love of Torah, and one thereafter, which begins with: True and Firm [emet veyatziv]. And in the evening one recites two blessings beforehand, on the radiant lights and on the love of God, and two thereafter, the blessing of redemption: True and Faithful [emet ve’emuna], and the blessing: Help us lie down...

While praying, one must face toward the direction of the Holy Temple. One who was riding on a donkey should dismount and pray calmly. If he is unable to dismount, he should turn his face toward the direction of the Temple. If he is unable to turn his face, it is sufficient that he focus his heart opposite the Holy of Holies.

One may only stand and begin to pray from an approach of gravity and submission. There is a tradition that the early generations of pious men would wait one hour, in order to reach the solemn frame of mind appropriate for prayer, and then pray, so that they would focus their hearts toward their Father in Heaven. Standing in prayer is standing before God and, as such, even if the king greets him, he should not respond to him; and even if a snake is wrapped on his heel, he should not interrupt his prayer.

And you shall love Adonoy your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your possessions. And these words which I command you today, shall be upon your heart. And you shall teach them sharply to your children. And you shall discuss them when you sit in your house, and when you travel on the road, and when you lie down and when you rise. And you shall bind them for a sign upon your hand, and they shall be for totafos between your eyes. And you shall write them upon the doorposts of your house and upon your gateways.

And it will be— if you vigilantly obey My commandments which I command you this day, to love Adonoy your God, and serve Him with your entire hearts and with your entire souls— that I will give rain for your land in its proper time, the early (autumn) rain and the late (spring) rain; and you will harvest your grain and your wine and your oil. And I will put grass in your fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied. Beware lest your hearts be swayed and you turn astray, and you worship alien gods and bow to them. And Adonoy’s fury will blaze among you, and He will close off the heavens and there will be no rain and the earth will not yield its produce; and you will perish swiftly from the good land which Adonoy gives you. Place these words of Mine upon your hearts and upon your souls,— and bind them for a sign upon your hands, and they shall be for totafos between your eyes. And you shall teach them to your sons, to speak them when you sit in your house, and when you travel on the road, and when you lie down and when you rise. And you shall write them upon the doorposts of your house and upon your gateways. In order that your days be prolonged, and the days of your children, upon the land which Adonoy swore to your fathers to give them [for as long] as the heavens are above the earth.

And Adonoy spoke to Moses saying: Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them to make for themselves fringes on the corners of their garments throughout their generations; and they will place with the fringes of each corner a thread of blue. And it will be to you for fringes, and you will look upon it and you will remember all the commandments of Adonoy, and you will perform them; and you will not turn aside after your hearts and after your eyes which cause you to go astray. In order that you will remember and perform all My commandments; and you will be holy unto your God. I am Adonoy, your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God: I am Adonoy, your God—

Bowing: What is implied?
One praying bows five times in each and every Amidah:
In the first blessing, at the beginning and at the end;
in the blessing of thanks, at the beginning and at the end; and
upon completing the Amidah, one bows and takes three steps backwards while bowing. He takes leave from his left and afterwards, from his right. Then, he lifts his head up from the bowed position.
When he bows the [other] four times, he does so at [the utterance of the word] "Blessed" and straightens up when [reciting] G‑d's name.
To whom does the above apply? To an average person. However, the High Priest bows at the beginning and end of each and every blessing. A king bows at the beginning [of the Amidah] and does not lift his head until he completes his whole Amidah.

Why should one take leave from the left first? Because one's left is to the right [side] of His countenance; i.e., just like when one stands before a king, he takes leave from the right of the king, and then afterwards from the left of the king. Thus, they established that one should withdraw from the Amidah in the same manner as he withdraws from before a king.

All these bows require that one bow until the vertebrae in his spine protrude and he makes himself like a bow.
However, if one bows slightly [to the extent that] it causes him pain and he appears to have bowed with all of his power, he need not worry.

And Rabba bar Ḥinnana Sava said in the name of Rav: One who is praying, when he bows in the appropriate places, he bows when he says: Blessed, and when he subsequently stands upright, he stands upright when he says God’s name.

Shmuel, who was Rav’s colleague and significantly outlived him, said: What is Rav’s reason for saying that one should stand upright at the mention of God’s name? As it is written: “The Lord, who raises the bowed” (Psalms 146:8); one stands upright at the mention of God’s name to recall that it is God who raises the bowed.