In broad terms mythology is composed of traditional stories about gods, kings, and heroes. Myths often tell about the creation of the world (and about its destruction as well), about the creation of men, and, also, they provide lessons on a moral code by which to live. They were attempts to provide rationale to natural events and to human emotion. Mythological stories generally were passed on orally from generation to succeeding generation. Each tale, embellished and "corrupted" through the re-tellings, was probably a reasoned explanation of the facts as seen by unsophisticated and uneducated eyes. Most scholars today divide the subject into three categories: pure myth (primitive science and primitive religion), heroic saga (primitive history), and folklore (fictional stories). I have tried my hardest to stick to this format on the following pages. Wherever possible I will indicate which type of myth you are reading.