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The great man, whether we comprehend him in the most intense activity of his work or in the restful equipoise of his forces, is powerful, involuntarily and composedly powerful, but he is not avid for power. What he is avid for is the realization of what he has in mind, the incarnation of the spirit.

— Martin Buber Between Man and Man (1965)

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More quotes by Martin Buber

All names of God remain hallowed because they have been used not only to speak of God but also to speak to him.

I and Thou (1923)

The real struggle is not between East and West, or capitalism and communism, but between education and propaganda.

Encounter with Martin Buber (1972)

All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware.

The Legend of the Baal-Shem (1955)

Greatness by nature includes a power, but not a will to power.

Between Man and Man (1965)

When we see a great man desiring power instead of his real goal we soon recognize that he is sick, or more precisely that his attitude to his work is sick.

What is Man? (1938)

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Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Martin Buber (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.