PREFACE

ancient Aryo-Indians, their political organizations, their
codes of laws, their high ethical code, and above all their
conceptions of God, the soul, and the Universe. Some
knowledge of them is necessary for those who desire to
approach with sympathy the investigation of the religious
beliefs of our Hindu fellow men and to understand their
outlook upon life and the world.

The Introduction deals with various aspects of the
study of these ancient myths and legends which have been
the inspiration of a national literature infused with much
grandeur and sublimity. The historic Aryan controversy,
of which the science of comparative mythology is a by-
product, is passed under review, and it is shown to what
extent philological theories regarding race problems have
been modified during recent years as a result of the
adoption of broader and more exact methods of ethnic
^ind archaeological research and the ever-extending study
orcomparative mythology. There has also been con-
densed much" important data dealing with the early phases
of Aryo-Indian civilization accumulated for historical pur-
poses by industrious and painstaking Sanskrit scholars
who have been engaged in investigating and systematizing
the internal evidence of the various religious poems and
treatises. It will be found that no general agreement has
yet been reached regarding Aryo-Indian chronology, but
it now appears to be well established that although there
were early cultural as well as racial "drifts", fresh in-
vasions, which had far-reaching results in the social and
religious life of northern India, occurred at a late period
in what is known as the Vedic Age. In consequence, the
problem presented by this ancient civilization tends rather
to grow more complex than to become simplified. Its
origin is still wrapped in obscurity. At the very dawn
of history Aryo-Indian culture had attained a compara-