I have undertaken the humble task of making an objective and unprejudiced study of the lives and works of the great philosophers, thinkers, statesmen and political leaders who taught the world to think, to tread the path of advancement and to transform the course of human history. It is absolutely essential to place their contribution in the right perspective, to juxtapose the similarities and dissimilarities of the ages in which they lived, to relate their contributions to the present time and to attempt an unbiased critical assessment of their work.