“All real living is meeting” — Martin Buber (I and Thou)

Source and attribution

The archive attributes this English wording to Ich und Du (1923) and files it under Dialogical Philosophy. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.

About Martin Buber

Martin Buber (1878–1965) was an Austrian-Jewish philosopher and theologian best known for I and Thou (1923). Active in Zionist cultural politics, Hasidic storytelling, and Bible translation with Franz Rosenzweig, he later taught at Hebrew University.

Interpretation

Buber's sentence is the thesis of I and Thou in miniature. He distinguishes two modes: treating something as an "it" — an object to be classified, used, or studied — and entering into relation with it as a "thou". His claim is that genuine living occurs in the second mode, and that a life organised entirely around the first is diminished even when it is successful. The word "meeting" is deliberate: relation is an event, not a property you possess.

Why it matters

It gives a way to notice the shift: are you dealing with this person, task, or place as something to be managed, or as something you are present to? The difference shows up in attention before it shows up in outcomes.

Concepts in this quote

Relation

Relation appears in this archive as a live philosophical concern—not a slogan. These verified English passages show how thinkers treat relation as a problem of judgment, practice, or explanation.

How to cite this quotation

APA: Martin Buber. (n.d.). All real living is meeting. In Philosophy Blind Box. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0196

MLA: Martin Buber. “All real living is meeting..” Philosophy Blind Box, https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0196.

Chicago: Martin Buber. “All real living is meeting..” Philosophy Blind Box. Accessed 2026. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0196.

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