by Gerhard Ockel
Pendle Hill Pamphlet #61, 1951

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Ever since man first looked at himself and knew that he was naked, his mind has been perplexed by the mystery of good and evil and its attendant cycle of sin, guilt, and redemption. The dragon and the dragon slayer, symbolic of darkness and light, have battled their way through the myths and legends of all races until, winded by the thin air of increasing sophistication, they retreated to the nursery, leaving the adult arena to the theologian, the philosopher, and the lawyer. As a medical doctor, I too, have become absorbed in this most fascinating of all problems, not through any taste for theological speculation, but because I am convinced that it has a considerable bearing on the mental health of all of us.

Though I had long suspected this I was convinced of it soon after beginning the serious study of modern psychology, and being incurably practical by nature I felt obliged to put my findings in a form which would be easy for others to understand and to apply to everyday life.