What are people saying before and after they eat?
Before eating, people say 'itadakimasu'; after finishing, 'gochisousama(-deshita).' Often the hands are pressed together briefly.
They are set phrases of gratitude: thanks for the life taken as food and for everyone who made the meal possible, said at the start and end like bookends.
Why — five layers
'Itadaku' is a humble verb for receiving; the phrase acknowledges receiving life (plants, animals) and effort, reflecting a diffuse gratitude rather than a prayer to one deity.
It is drilled at home and especially at school lunch as a daily habit, so most people say it automatically regardless of religion.
School-lunch routines (kyushoku) formalize the call-and-response start and end, spreading a uniform form nationwide.
International view
Many cultures have a pre-meal grace, but those are often religious. Here the phrases are largely secular daily etiquette, and there is a matching after-meal phrase, which is less common elsewhere.
But not always
It is not mandatory or religious. Adults eating alone or grabbing a quick konbini meal often skip it or just murmur it; nobody will scold a foreigner for staying silent.
What to do
A quiet 'itadakimasu' before and 'gochisousama-deshita' after (with a slight bow to a host or cook) is warmly received. Skipping it is fine too.
Sources
- Japanese language etymology of itadaku
- school lunch (kyushoku) practice