Anthropologist Susan Johnston changes a scholarly vision using one of humankind’s primary interests throughout history: the spiritual belief system. Starting her lectures with an effort to define religion, Professor Johnston proceeds this intriguing study with an study of mythology and symbols, rituals and witchcraft, gender, politics, and religion’s put in place the many traditions surrounding death. A continuing and frequently contentious presence in the world today, religion, from its roots to the present, is an essential component for understanding communities and cultures all over the globe.