i-it

I-Thou

itT itT
i
i
itT
I THOU i
i
itT
from the I in I-It.
The I in I-Thou is different The Primary word I-It can never be spoken
The Primary word I-Thou can only be spoken with the whole being.
with the whole being.
When a primary word is spoken, the speaker
When a primary word is spoken, the speaker enters the word and takes his stand in it.
enters the word and takes his stand in it.
Objectify

Boundless Relational Experience

Relational Encounter I perceive something

I sense something
3 Spheres I think about something
Nature – Below speech I feel something
Man – Speech
Spirit – Speaking with my being

In every sphere, we look out toward the eternal

THOU. i-it has no present, only past.

I-THOU lives in present.

Even if the person to whom I say THOU is

unaware (operating as i-it), relation can still exist.

The THOU meets me through grace—not by

seeking. (We cannot control.) Yet speaking the
primary word I-THOU is an act of my whole
being.

The THOU meets me. But I step into relation with

it. This means being chosen and choosing.

I become through my relation to the THOU. As I

become I, I say THOU.

All real living is meeting.

 i-it
I-Thou

itT itT
i
i
itT
I THOU i
i
itT
Man dwells in love. Love exists between I and
THOU.

Buber uses the image of the cross as an example

of love.

Relation is mutual. My THOU affects me. I affect

it.

Every THOU becomes an it with potential to

become a THOU again.

“The It is the eternal chrysalis, the Thou is the

eternal butterfly-except that situations do not
always follow one another in clear succession, but
there is a happening profoundly two fold,
confusedly entangled”
 i-it

I-Thou

itT itT
i
i
itT
I THOU i
i
itT
from the I in I-It.
The Primary word I-It can never be spoken
The I in I-Thou is different with the whole being.
The Primary word I-Thou can only be spoken
with the whole being.
When a primary word is spoken, the speaker
When a primary word is spoken, the speaker enters the word and takes his stand in it.
enters the word and takes his stand in it.
Objectify
Boundless
Relational Experience
Relational Encounter
I perceive something
3 Spheres I sense something
Nature – Below speech I think about something
Man – Speech I feel something
Spirit – Speaking with my being

In every sphere, we look out toward the eternal

THOU.
i-it has no present, only past.
I-THOU lives in present.

Even if the person to whom I say THOU is

unaware (operating as i-it), relation can still exist.

The THOU meets me through grace—not by

seeking. (We cannot control.) Yet speaking the
primary word I-THOU is an act of my whole
being.

The THOU meets me. But I step into relation with

it. This means being chosen and choosing.

I become through my relation to the THOU. As I

become I, I say THOU.

All real living is meeting.