Disenchantment with the underlying materialism of much of present-day society is driving many Westerners towards the integrated approach of Eastern philosophy, but often in a vague and generalized form. In this introduction to the world's oldest philosophies, Richard Osborne and Borin Van Loon brilliantly elucidate the complex strands of Eastern thought from Confucius to Buddha and Islam to Tao. They explain the emphasis on the "nature of being", and on ethical and communal principles. They also illuminate the search for Enlightenment, showing how these ideas are set within a cosmic whole rather than a framework of practical, scientific, and individual thought.