Blessings · Waking and the table
What is Birkat Hamazon?
Birkat Hamazon is the berachah (blessing) said after a meal with bread — a command that comes from the Torah itself. It is built of four blessings: thanks for the food, for the Land, for Jerusalem, and for the enduring goodness of Heaven.
Grace after the meal
Most blessings prepare us to receive; Birkat Hamazon teaches us to give thanks once we are full. Its root is a single verse: 'You shall eat and be satisfied, and you shall bless' (Deuteronomy 8:10). It is one of the rare blessings the Torah commands by name — precisely for the moment when we are satisfied and might forget the Source of the meal.
Its four blessings
The Talmud, Berakhot 48b sets out its shape as four blessings. The first gives thanks for food, for the One who feeds all life. The second thanks Hashem for the Land — the good land given to our people. The third turns toward Jerusalem and its rebuilding. The fourth, added by the sages, blesses the One who is good and does good. Together they carry the eater from the plate in front of them outward to land, people, and the Holy One, blessed be He.
What to do
After a meal that included bread, and once you are satisfied, say Birkat Hamazon before rising from the table. It is customarily read from a text (a bentcher or siddur) so the four blessings are said in full. For the customs of your table — when three or more eat together, and how it is led — turn to your rabbi or community.
Source: Deuteronomy 8:10; Talmud, Berakhot 48b.
To carry the grace after meals with you and say it in full, Barkai (the blessings of the day; the sky and place tell you the moment) holds it ready for the close of the meal.
Open Barkai