I and Thou

Written by Martin Buber

Narrated by Deaver Brown

Buber's landmark work in Psychology and Philosophy as well as in Religion

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simply Magazine Inc.
• Release date: Jan 1, 2019
• ISBN: 9781614966159

Martin Buber

Martin Buber (1878-1965) was an enormously prolific moral philosopher whose work examines Hasidism, scripture, and dialogic thinking. His best-known work is I and Thou.

Reviews for I and Thou

[jonbrammer-788089 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was the one sticking point for me:

"Feelings accompany the metaphysical and metapsychical fact of love, but they do not constitute it; and the feelings that accompany it can be very different." (66)

I've always thought that Kant's discussion of the metaphysical is besides the point. Sure, there are forces in the universe that lie outside of human understanding. That does not mean that our "feeling" of these forces, of which love may be one, is not primary.

I am writing this as a layman of philosophy. I've only read bits of "A Critique of Pure Reason" and am piecing together the knowledge I have of the material vs. the metaphysical.

For Buber, verbs are key. One does not "experience" or "use" the other, the You. One "encounters" or "stands against" this being.

This is a lovely and dense piece of spiritual and philosophical wrangling. Whether you are an atheist or evangelical, you probably have some experience of the divine. What that means is truly being a part of the world.

[jwhenderson_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I and Thou is a key text in ethical, religious, and intellectual philosophy from the 20th century. It exhibits elements of each of those even though it isn't strictly a work of philosophy, religion, poetry, or mysticism. Its introspective, aphoristic tone could even be described as "theopoetic." The book also covers a wide range of topics, even though it is only a little over 200 pages long, such as modernity, human psychology, perception and consciousness, evil, ethics, education, spirituality, religious tradition, the natural world, biblical hermeneutics, the relationship between personal and communal fulfillment, the relationship between the divine and the human, and so forth.The book is not weighed down with obscure allusions and convoluted reasoning, but rather it is profoundly affected by and engages in an implicit dialogue with Kant, Hegel, Marx, Feuerbach, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, and Heidegger, not to mention the mystic traditions of Hasidism. Buber's writings are still regarded as a turning point in existentialist philosophy.I and Thou is a deceptively straightforward idea, which is that all existence is encounter, despite its weighty heritage. Additionally, it makes for a fascinating, stimulating, and enjoyable read.

[mistahkurtz-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

It's hard to say whether I liked it or not. Question is really: did I understand it? This is possibly once of Buber's most accessible books, and yet...I spent three hours trying to get through the first ten pages of his work (not the introduction, whihc takes up almost a third of this slim volume).It's dense. There's no other word for it. I can sense its meaning; I know he was on to something very big in terms of understanding the relationship between one human being and the next - the other. It's just all very opaque for those not trained in philosophy. For instance:"There is no I as such but only the I of the basic word I-You and the I of the basic word I-It. When a man says I, he means one or the other. The I he means is present when he says I. And when he says You or It, the I of one or the other basic word is also present."When you read this a few times, think about it real heard, and go back to it once more you actually start grasping something of the immensity of Buber's thinking. It gets easier as you move along, especially the second part. I read this mostly because I was interested in Buber's take on mysticism, but there are easier books, perhaps the ones which explain Buber's thinking rather than repeat his words.

[aniarnott · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I first read I and Thou when I was 13 and trying to find my pack; his central idea formed me for life, and if I had not read any other book, I would still have become a better person from this one.

[the_awesome_opossum · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

“Every real relation with a being or life in the world is exclusive. Its Thou is freed, steps forth, is single, and confronts you. It fills the heavens. This does not mean that nothing else exists; but all else lives in its light. As long as the presence of the relation continues, this its cosmic range is inviolable. But as soon as a Thou becomes It, the cosmic range of the relation appears as an offence to the world, its exclusiveness as an exclusion of the universe.”Martin Buber's I and Thou is not so much a formal approach to theology as it is a simple answer to "How should I be in the world?" Ethical living is found not in the realm of interiority and constancy, but within dynamic relation to the world. We must respect the humanity and complexity of every person sui generis, not only their function in our lives at any particular moment.This is a very nice introductory ethos. But Buber pushes the extent of the I-Thou relationship further: to the cosmos and to God. And from that position, he also argues that God is in dynamic relation with creation. The model of an omni-max God, almost a force rather than a being, hinders divine relation and makes creation trite. If God is everything already, then the world was created as a bauble and God can only understand us as an It. For creation to be meaningful, God has to grow in relation to it: to be surprised and delighted by our decisions as "created co-creators" (not Buber's term, but I think he would've liked it). We must treat the world and one another in a way that affirms God's presence and presentness, for "the world is not divine sport, it is divine destiny. There is divine meaning in the life of the world, of man, of human persons, of you and of me."The orthodox alternative, that God is omni-max and unchanging and 'faith' is about what set of beliefs you keep, ends up looking like idolatry in contrast to Buber's theology of compassionate relation. We therefore end up at an empowered existentialism: God didn't create the world teleologically, but instead the meaning of life is dynamic, as the creation uniting God with the world is worked out in mutual and loving relationship.

[adamtarn_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

As the translator's preface says in this edition, this needs to be read like you would a poem because indeed it is a poem. Hence it must be read more than once. In fact, you could probably read it multiple times over the course of your life and never truly master it. And rightfully so. It is not a text to be mastered by one you enter into relation with. In true Buberian fashion and must have an I-Thou encounter with the text itself. Likewise, words cannot do justice to the contents, message, and spirit of this book. Language is not adequate to express its effects. All I have to say - which isn't saying much - and yet which is saying everything - this book has the potential to change your life.Buber is one of the greatest Jewish thinkers of the 20th century and this work was almost an instant classic. I can see why every major theologian cites "I and Thou" in their work. Whether you agree with all his ideas or not - doesn't matter - read it, and have an encounter.

[davidandrew52_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Inspiring thoughtful book

[jpsnow · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

90% of what I gained from this book occurred in the first few pages. The rest does expound on the concept, but neither mesmerized me the way it did other reviewers nor led me to deem this a core philosophical work. Most people pass through life in terms of I-it. They are the I and everything else, including ideas, is an object to which they relate on that limited basis. When we begin to relate to others, including people, things, and God, as Thou, we fully realize and live in the true relationship. Buber goes on and on, with a lot of deep, invented concepts. I can appreciate the spiritual and the novel, but, oh, give me Bacon or Locke.