# Food blessing/prayer/thanks-giving



## mudmama (Jan 25, 2007)

I'm looking for a blessing to teach my children that we would say before meals that is non-religious, yet shows thankfullness for the origins of the foods and gratefulness to the people who have worked to bring us the meal. Anything simple, rhymming, what do you say before meals??


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## WC_hapamama (Sep 19, 2005)

We just say itadakismasu, but we're (mostly) Japanese here.


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## 4lilfarmers (Feb 9, 2006)

:


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## vgnmama2keller (Apr 27, 2006)

We say

Blessings, Thank you for this food. Let's eat!

our friends say (something like this can't remember word for word)

Thank you mother earth for the soil to grow the food
thank you father sky for the sun and rain to grow the food
Thank you to the farmers who help the food grow
thank you for family and friends to share the food with
Let's eat!

Kari
www.veganparenting.com


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## Wendy79 (Jan 23, 2007)

This is a song, but it works well as a saying, too:

Back of the bread is the flour
And back of the flour is the mill
And back of the mill is the wind and the rain
And the farmer's will.


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## Cisne (Jan 14, 2005)

A friend uses Rafi's song All I Really Need:
All I really need is a song in my heart, food in my belly and love in my family.

We use: Thank you for the world so sweet,
Thank you for the food we eat,
Thank you for the birds that sing,
Thank You God for everything.
Amen


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## Sustainer (Sep 26, 2002)

Every year on the Autumnal Equinox, we have a Feast. I used to say something about our mother the Earth and our father the sun, who, between them, bring forth and sustain all life.

I was inspired by a cute, simple, rhyming poem that is said during the movie The River. It can't remember the exact words, but the ending is something like ...something something 'that grew it well, mother Earth and father sun, we thank you for what you have done' or something like that. They're farmers.


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## quantumleap (Apr 13, 2006)

This is from Madeleine L'Engle's "A House Like a Lotus", which means it's probably from an early English philosopher, but either way... They are meant to be sung, but I don't have the music. You could make up your own, or sing it to another tune.

There are several verses:
Receive our thanks for night and day,
For food and shelter, rest and play,
Be here our guest, and with us stay,
Saranam, saranam, saranam

For this small earth of sea and land,
For this small space on which we stand,
For those we touch with heart and hand,
Saranam, saranam, saranam

There are more, but they are more prayer for other things, like strength and love.

Saranam is explained like this:
"Refuge", Norine said.
"God's richest blessing", Millie added.
Krhis said, "There is no Englih equivalent."
Frank laughed, "There doesn't need to be. Saranam says it all, loving, giving, caring."
Omio said, "I think it is like a Bakian word which means that love does not judge."

So, basically, you're wishing a special sort of love/blessing, I guess, which seems quite non-religious, even though L'Engle is of the Christian persuasion.

Blessings!
Katia


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## mudmama (Jan 25, 2007)

I wanted to revisit this and see if there were any more prayers or blessings out there. I enjoyed these so much, I've decided to start scribing them into my clay pots. I'd love to also here what religious prayers are out there too. I'd like to cover all the bases, so to speak.
My kids and I now have index cards with prayers/blessing on them at the table. We take turns picking one and saying it.... until we learn them all.


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## melissa17s (Aug 3, 2004)

The preschool that ds went said this...
"Earth who gives to us this food,
Sun who makes it ripe and good,
Dear Earth, Dear Sun, we will not forget the things you have done.
Blessings on our food and blessings on our friends."

Our dc sometimes want to say it before meals.


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## tbone (Dec 17, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mudmama* 
My kids and I now have index cards with prayers/blessing on them at the table. We take turns picking one and saying it.... until we learn them all.

What a great idea!


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## myrrhmaid (Aug 20, 2002)

One fantastic momma we know taught us-
Blessings on the blossom
Blessings on the root
Blessings on the leave & stem
Blessings on the fruit.
We sing this at preschool & love it!
Your claypot idea sounds terrific!


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## mudmama (Jan 25, 2007)

thank you ladies for the blessings!! After I make, fire and photo my pots with blessings, I'll return here to share my work!! It's not just healthy food that is important at the table, what you put your food on feeds the soul.


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## taramt (Feb 26, 2005)

we have a couple we alternate through, 2 of which were mentioned here...
The others are:
earth who gives to us this food
sun who makes it ripe and good
Sun above and Earth below
Loving thanks to you we show

For the golden corn and the apples on the trees
For the golden butter and the honey from the bees
For fruits and nuts and berries
we gather on our way
we thank our loving Mother earth
We thank her every day


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## Rhiannon Feimorgan (Aug 26, 2005)

My favorite is:

Give thanks to the Mother Gaia.
Give thanks to the Father Sun.
Give love to the Children in the garden,
Where the Mother and the Father are One.
Give thanks, give thanks, to you we do give thanks.
Give thanks, give thanks, to you we do give thanks.


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