itadakimasu (lit=’I am receiving something’)
One of many Japanese expressions that has no direct translation in English, ‘itadakimasu’ can basically be equated with ‘saying grace’, a short prayer said by a lot of religious families (particularly in the US) to thank God before eating a meal.

‘Itadakimasu’ may also seem like a prayer because of the gesture that often accompanies it, but in fact has little religious connection in modern day Japan. As abcjp.net explains, its origins lie in thanking both the person who prepared the food and the local kami (deity) but these days the latter is uncommon.

Both ’saying grace’ and the expression ‘itadakimasu’ are used to show a person’s gratitude for the food they are about to eat and are said before a family or group meal commences. But whereas ‘grace’ is usually said with eyes closed, ‘itadakimasu’ is said with eyes open, often while breaking apart waribashi (disposable chopsticks).

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 2nd, 2008 at 12:02 pm and is filed under Uncategorized, Articles in English, Japanese Language and Culture. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.