There are three different levels of making the gesture, each appropriate for a different set of occasions.
(1) The solemnest occasion is, of course, when one worships a Buddha image or salutes a Buddhist monk. There are two different ways for males and females to wai.
Males: Bow low while raising both hands with palm pressed together up to the face with the forefingers touching the fringe of the hair above the forehead.
Females: Move a foot backward and bend the knees while raising both pressing palms to the same position as men do