I and Thou

Martin Buber's little book is one of the most important you can read. It is very short and very simple, but it can change the way you see the World.

Buber's thesis is that you can relate to the World in 2 ways, I-It and I-Thou. I-It is how we generally go through or days and it is useful. This is a relationship where you see things as just that, things. It is the view of secular life.

I-Thou is a relationship of life to life and this is a sacred relationship.

For example: If I go out and see a tree, like the oak outside my door and see it as just a tree, that is I-It. But, if I see it as the magnificent living being that it is. That is I-Thou, a sacred relationship.

Sometimes, and we all are guilty of this, we even see other people in an I-It relationship. Instead of seeing a human being, we might see Fred the car repairman who is taking to long with my car. When you do this, you have reduced Fred to an object. This is more apparent in wars where instead of an individual being you must relate to, you just label him as enemy, a thing.

Buber explains this far better than I can and I urge you to read his book; it will change how you perceive the World.