Purpose: This article describes the findings of a phenomenological study whose purpose was to understand the essence of education from the analysis of the relationships emerging between the main educational actors (professors and students). Design/methodology/approach: This research was approached from the qualitative paradigm and from a method of phenomenological analysis; specifically, heterological phenomenology is proposed, which is presented as the search for human relationships as a founding condition of education. For collecting information, a phenomenological interview with twelve professors from public and private universities in the city of Manizales (Colombia) was used. Findings: The results reveal the experiences had in education from the relationships that have left their mark on the subjects and discover education as a relationship with the Other of welcome, hospitality, vocation and responsibility. Originality/value: The originality of the study is in the particular method, heterological phenomenology, which investigates the experience of human relationships as a scenario for constructing a reality in which the starting point is the narrative that the Other (research subject) makes of his encounters with his-Other (subject present in the narrative).