BUBER, MARTIN

born Feb. 8, 1878, Vienna died June 13, 1965, Jerusalem German-Jewish religious philosopher, biblical translator and interpreter, and master of German prose style. Buber's philosophy was centred on the encounter, or dialogue, of man with other beings, particularly exemplified in the relation with other men but ultimately resting on and pointing to the relation with God. This thought reached its fullest dialogical expression in Ich und Du (1923; I and Thou). Additional reading Moshe Cattane (comp.), A Bibliography of Martin Buber's Works (18971957) (1958). Biographies. Maurice Friedman, Martin Buber's Life and Works, vol. 1, The Early Years, 18781923 (1981), vol. 2, The Middle Years, 19231945 (1983), vol. 3, The Later Years, 19451965 (1984), definitive biography in English; Hans Kohn, Martin Buber: Sein Werk und seine Zeit (1930; new ed. with a postscript by Robert Weltsch, 1963), authoritative biography in German; My Way to Hasidism in Hasidism and Modern Man (1958); Autobiographical Fragments: Martin Buber, in Schilpp and Friedman, ch. 1 (cited below); Aubrey Hodes, Martin Buber: An Intimate Portrait (1971), worthwhile reading, though not fully reliable in all factual details. Writings on Buber. Paul Arthur Schilpp and Maurice Friedman (eds.), The Philosophy of Martin Buber (1967), 30 critical essays by different authors on Buber's impact on such fields as theology, philosophy, Zionism, Hasidism, and education; Sidney and Beatrice Rome (eds.), Interrogation of Martin Buber, in Philosophical Interrogations, new ed. (1970), queries by various thinkers and scholars with answers by Buber; Hans Urs von Balthasar, Einsame Zwiesprache: Martin Buber und das Christentum (1958; Martin Buber and Christianity: A Dialogue Between Israel and the Church, 1961), a Roman Catholic scholar's friendly but critical answer to Two Types of Faith; Arthur A. Cohen, Martin Buber (1957), a critical appreciation from a more traditional Jewish standpoint; Malcolm L. Diamond, Martin Buber: Jewish Existentialist (1968), an empathetic analysis of one central aspect of Buber's thought; Maurice Friedman, Martin Buber: The Life of Dialogue (1960, 3rd ed. 1976), the pioneer work on Buber in English; Will Herberg, The Writing of Martin Buber (1956), an excellent introduction and a good selection of quotations from Buber's work; Roy Oliver, The Wanderer and the Way: The Hebrew Tradition in the Writings of Martin Buber (1968), a personal testimony of a former follower and student of Gandhi for whom Buber's biblical work became a turning point; Grete Schaeder, Martin Buber: Hebrischer Humanismus (1966; The Hebrew Humanism of Martin Buber, 1973), a standard work, partly done under Buber's personal supervision; Akiba Ernst Simon, Jewish Adult Education in Nazi Germany As Spiritual Resistance, in Yearbook I of the Leo Baeck Institute, pp. 68104 (1956), deals largely with Buber's initiative, educational philosophy, and practical leadership; Martin Buber and German Jewry, in Yearbook III, pp. 339 (1958), deals inter alia with Buber's relation to T. Herzl, H. Cohen, and F. Rosenzweig. Major Works: Some of Buber's works were written in Hebrew and later translated into German or English or both. Other works, particularly collections of essays, were published originally in German and later translated into English. Those of his writings that appeared only in Hebrew are not listed here. Philosophical works. Ich und Du (1923; I and Thou, 1937 and 1970); Rede ber das Erzieherische (1926); Bildung und Weltanschauung (1935); Die Frage an den Einzelnen (1936); Netivot be-utopya (1947; Paths in Utopia, 1949; Pfade in Utopia, 1950); Das Problem des Menschen (1948; published in Dialogisches Leben, 1947; What Is Man? in Between Man and Man, 1947); Zwei Glaubensweisen (1950; Two Types of Faith, 1951); Zwischen Gesellschaft und Staat (1952); Bilder von Gut und Bse (1952; Images of Good and Evil, 1952; Good and Evil, Two Interpretations, 1953); Eclipse of God (1952; Gottesfinsternis, 1953). Biblical and religious works. Daniel: Gesprche von der Verwirklichung (1913; rev. ed. 1919); Die Schrift, 15 vol. (1926??37; rev. ed. 195462), a translation of the Hebrew Bible into German; Knigtum Gottes, vol. 1 of Das Kommende (1932; Eng. trans. from the 3rd German ed. of 1956, Kingship of God, 1966); Gog u-megog (1941; For the Sake of Heaven, 1945; Gog und Magog, 1957); Torat ha-nevi'im (1942; The Prophetic Faith, 1949; Der Glaube der Propheten, 1950); Moshe (1945; Moses, 1946 and 1952); Ha-tzedeq wehaawon (1950; Right and Wrong, 1952); Elija: ein Mysterienspiel (1963). Hasidism. Die Geschichten des Rabbi Nachman (1906, rev. ed. 1955; The Tales of Rabbi Nachman, 1956); Die Legende des Baalschem (1908; The Legend of the Baal-Shem, 1955); Die chassidischen Bcher (1927; Eng. trans. in 2 vol., Tales of the Hasidim, 194748; later German ed. Die Erzhlungen der Chassim, 1949); Der Weg des Menschen nach der Chassidischen Lehre (1948; The Way of Man, According to the Teachings of Hasidism, 1950; 2 vol., Hasidism and the Way of Man, 1958, 1960). Other works. Ben am le-'artzo (1945; Israel und Palstina, 1950; Eng. trans. from the German, Israel and Palestine, 1952); Bcher und Menschen (1952); An der Wende (1952; At the Turning, 1952); Der Mensch und sein Gebild (1955).