Geology 



of the Universe as well as the sober and reasoned theories 

 of more scientific workers. 



As a natural consequence of the facts that in early 

 times education was almost wholly confined to priests or 

 the members of religious orders, and that the laity were 

 usually unable to read or write, early cosmogony was 

 always almost inextricably mingled with religion, and 

 only too often reason was clouded and overshadowed by 

 superstition. 



Though they differ in many particulars and details, 

 there is a strange similarity between the cosmogony of 

 the early Indian and Egyptian schools of thought. They 

 agree in ascribing the creation of the Universe, which to 

 them was centred about the world and the human race, 

 to an omnipotent being who possessed many of the 

 drawbacks and inabilities of humanity, amongst others 

 the need of rest and even of sleep. 



Some seem to have attributed the creation of the 

 actual matter of the Universe to this being, while others 

 considered that the "inert matter" was an original first 

 cause, and that it was caused to take definite form and 

 to go through certain cycles of activity by the compelling 

 will of the creator. 



Amongst the ancient inhabitants of India certain 

 sacred songs and poems had been passed on from mouth 

 to mouth during many generations, and were first brought 

 together into a connected form about thirteen centuries 

 before the birth of Christ. 



From the different views expressed in these vedas 

 they would appear to have originated at different periods 

 characterized by ideas of varying degrees of advance- 

 ment, and therefore to be considerably more ancient than 



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