Reddit reviews Socrates, Buddha, Confucius, Jesus: From The Great Philosophers, Vol. 1

I would suggest this thin volume from philosopher Karl Jaspers:

Socrates, Buddha, Confucius, Jesus: The Great Philosophers

>There is/was a sect of Christianity which focused on cultivating wisdom -- the Gnostics. There is also a sect of Islam called Sufis which do the same. Mainstream Christianity/Islam does not encourage contemplation and analysis.

I want to push back on this a little bit, if you don't mind. The Gnostics, as I understand them, are actually quite guilty of institutionalizing their faith (considering their secret rituals and what have you), despite their pursuit of wisdom, so surely you can't be against institutions or rituals in and of themselves. I'm not entirely sure what you mean by "mainstream" Christianity or Islam, but it seems to me that those traditions are actually rich in contemplative resources. I can't speak too much of the Islamic community, as I am more interested in the Christian one, but this is especially true of the "high church" traditions in Christianity (Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican). Furthermore, I think there are ways to be orthodox (little "o") in Christian theology while remaining and promoting contemplation. Augustine's Confessions is among the most contemplative works in ancient theology, and surely the rich tradition of Christian mysticism can't be ignored here (John of the Cross, Francis of Assisi, Teresa of Avila, etc.--indeed, there are far too many to list). There is also a huge return to contemplative prayer in Protestant circles as of late (see especially the New Monastic movement).

Perhaps I've misunderstood your terms, and if so please feel free to clarify.

>Buddhism of all the religions I know is the least tainted and actively promotes analysis and seeking wisdom within. The Buddha himself said not to believe anything he said out of blind faith, and the goal of Buddhism is to achieve enlightenment through direct experience. It is do it yourself and wholly unlike the major Western religions which rely on faith and salvation.

I would push back here, too, particularly considering Karl Jaspers' book Socrates, Buddha, Confucius, Jesus. He actually wants to recover the contemplative Buddha which has been covered over by popular Asian practices which institutionalize his thought. Also, I wonder if perhaps you've misread the major Western religions--only hardline evangelicals would hold to your understanding of faith and salvation. Those in high church communions actually stress quite a lot on works, both internal and external.