Western philosophy is a vast intellectual tradition, the product of
thousands of years of revolutionary thought built up by a rich collection
of brilliant minds. When most of us study philosophy, we're focusing only
on the Western intellectual tradition brought about by people such
as Aristotle, Descartes, and Nietzsche. But to understand the Western
intellectual tradition is to only get half of the story.

Just as important, and just as valid a contribution to philosophy, is
the Eastern intellectual tradition. Eastern philosophy is also the product
of thousands of years of thought and was also built up by a distinct group
of brilliant thinkers. Among these are

the Buddha,
Confucius,
Gandhi, and
Zarathustra.

Their ideas demonstrate fascinating, wholly different ways of approaching,
understanding, and solving the same fundamental questions that concerned
the West's greatest thinkers, such as

the existence of God,
the meaning of life,
the nature of truth and reality,
the organization of government and society,
the significance of suffering, and
the roots of a well-lived life.

To explore Eastern perspectives on these issues is to embark on an
illuminating journey into the heart of grand, but often unfamiliar,
civilizations. It's also a thought-provoking way to understand the
surprising connections and differences between East and West, and to
strengthen your knowledge of cultures that play increasingly important
roles in our globalized 21st-century world.

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