What does 1 Samuel 1:9 mean?

Hannah has been weeping, bitterly sad about her inability to have children with her husband Elkanah (1 Samuel 1:1–5). Worse, she has been tormented about her infertility by his other wife. She has been unable to eat, and he has been unable to console her or understand the depth of her sadness (1 Samuel 1:6–8).

When the meal is over, Hannah gets up and heads to the temple of the Lord. At this time, the "temple" was still the tabernacle: the tent-like structure designed by God and built during the exodus from Egypt (Exodus 25:9). They are in Shiloh, a town north of Jerusalem. The tent of meeting in Shiloh is the main center for worship in Israel, and Eli was the priest at Shiloh. He is sitting in a chair by the entrance to the temple. The seat was likely a special chair for the priest to show his position. People normally sat on the ground during this era, though in some settings would have used benches or stools.