Social activist, teacher and religious writer Martin Buber was one of the 20th century's most important and passionate representatives of the human spirit. Two of his most influential works - The Way of Man and Ten Rungs - resonate to this day. The tales and aphorisms retold by Buber in Ten Rungs are drawn from Hasidic lore, where the various ways in which individuals learn to perfect themselves are the rungs on a ladder leading to a higher realm. The Way of Man is a masterpiece of economy in which Buber relates and interprets six Hasidic stories that offer wisdom for any age.