We are all familiar with the fact that man in former days
readily believed in the existence of an unseen world, a world
of ghosts, demons, nature-spirits which were worshipped as gods,
and a host of other supernatural beings. This world lay all about him
and in some respects was more real to him than the physical world.
It was his belief in it, and in the power of the forces it contained, that
gave birth first to primitive magic and later to religion.
Even today, vast numbers of people all over the world, and not
merely among savage tribes or backward peasantry, but in
advanced and educated communities, particularly in Asia, still
believe in this mysterious realm and in various classes of beings
that inhabit it, to an extent that would surprise most Westerners
apart from those who have made a study of the subject. To the
Asian mind it is equally surprising that Westerners, with the
exception of spiritualists, are sceptical regarding it.
