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Andrew Lang was one of the leading lights in the study of unexplained phenomena. In this collection of essays, he takes a look at the state of the study of early religion, ritual, magic, and myth. He begins by looking at science and superstition, and the dangers of allowing belief unsupported by fact to seep into science. He then discusses the origin or religion, and "loan gods," or borrowed religion, a theory advanced by E.B. Tylor. Lang then moves on to look at William Frazer's theory of the origin of the divine character of Christ. In addition, Lang discusses other topics related to early religious beliefs, including taboos and walking through fire.