Centuries before the birth of Christ, the Buddha taught a path of love, compassion, and forgiveness, originating from his experiences of suffering in the world. The cause of suffering, he believed, lay within the soul, which had become self-centered and egoistic.

The Buddha inaugurated the Eightfold Path for purification and transformation--eight exercises that can lead to a new relationship with the world, from self-centeredness to warm interest in one's environment and other people. The exercises, described and explained here in their correct sequence--each preparing the individual for...