Preface The importance of a knowledge of mythology is felt by all readers, even of our daily papers and magazines, and it is indispensable to the enjoyment of art and literature. It assists us to understand many allusions in the New Testament, and by revealing to us the ceremonies and maxims of Paganism, it inspires us with new respect for the majesty of the Christian religion. The early races expressed by their religious legends their opinions on the origin and destiny of man, their motives for the performance of what they considered duty, and their ground of hope for the hereafter. It has been fully proved that mythology is simply a phase in the growth of language, the study of which has explained many things in mythology which hitherto appeared contradictory. Cox says, “ The task of analyzing and comparing the myths of the Aryan nations has opened to me a source of unqualified delight.