Socrates, Buddha, Confucius, Jesus

A part of Jaspers's planned universal history of philosophy, focusing on the four paradigmatic individuals who have exerted a historical influence of incomparable scope and depth. Edited by Hannah Arendt; Index. Translated by Ralph Manheim.
Arguably the four most influential individuals in human history, Socrates, the Buddha, Confucius and Jesus have cast shadows on history that are nearly inescapable even today. Who were they, what were their doctrines, and what was their influence? These are some of the questions that the 20th-century philosopher Karl Jaspers explores in this short excerpt from his larger volume, Great Philosophers.