2012...end of days?

Ok. So most of us have seen the movie 2012, and those who were lucky, did not. The whole 2012 doomsday prophecy is becoming quite a phenomenon. It ties in with the end of the Maya Long Count Cycle, and some people may see this as proof that the end of the world is nigh. Then again, wasn’t Y2K or SARS or H1N1 also heralded as the end of days?


Think of the Christian Armageddon, disease, anthrax or celestial bombardment, the concept of 2012 can scare people into hopeless situations. So let’s look at 2012 by first examining where the whole 2012 concept comes from.


The Mayan Long Count calendar is quite unique among those of Mesoamerica. It counts the progression of days, and using a base 20 system, created a five number system to count the passing of time since the date of creation. Essentially the Long Count leads up to the ending of a grand cycle, which is about 5,126 years.


According to this then, the Maya creation began sometime on or around August 13, 3114 BC. Of course we know from archaeology that humanity existed long before this date. How this date was concocted is a question to ponder over eternally. It can be seen that the Maya saw the Great Cycle as one World Age.

The Maya believed that the cosmos had a way of affecting what happened on Earth. Each planet, galaxy and constellation had a specific way that they affected time and the events that happened or were to come. The alignment of these bodies with the sun also affected outcomes. By observing the cycles the Maya were able to determine and understand future and past events. Their study of alignments in the cosmos helped to create the excitement about December 21, 2012, the end of the current Great Cycle.



What does all this mean, if anything? The predictions of a declined civilization are freaking people out. People are prone to spreading and believing hysteria. New Age movements in the West have also long been talking about a Changing of the Age, and use the 2012 date to confirm their theory. Hollywood used it as the basis of a movie to make more money, causing many to believe a lot of the hype surrounding 2012. (Many in Taiwan questioned me about it, fearing for their futures)


So there's no real need to freak out. If you're worried about something happening in 2012, just take sensible steps like making sure you have sufficient food and water for about a week, just in case. It's something you should be doing anyway and the feeling of security you get from being prepared should help you with any pre-2012 jitters.



Antonio Beardall











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