Wednesday, June 13, 2012

The End of the Maya Calendar

From Honduras Weekly:  The End of the Maya Calendar

According to many people, 2012 marks the beginning of the end of the world as we know it. But what exactly does that mean? What exactly is predicted to happen on December 21, 2012? Does it mean the planet is on the threshold of some galactic catastrophe? Or does it mean that the human race is on the threshold of a positive transformation that will touch our minds, bodies, and even our souls? Or does it mean something else entirely?

At present, there are tons of sites across the web that focus on the 2012 prophecy. These sites can all trace their roots back to the Mayan Long Count Calendar. This calendar is a non-repeating, base-20 calendar that identifies a day by counting the number of days that have passed since the date of creation. For the Maya, the date of creation equates to August 11, 3114 BCE on the Gregorian calendar.

August 11, 3114 BCE is the date. This date also was the start of the present 5,125-year cycle which is set to end on December 21, 2012. This cycle is based on the Mayan study of astronomy. The Mayans realized the earth wobbles as it spins on its axis. This wobbling rotation causes the stars’ patterns of movement to drift gradually in the sky in a 5,125-year cycle. With this information in hand, along with their knack for mathematics, the Maya came up with their Long Count Calendar around 355 BCE.

The Long Count Calendar was rediscovered and translated in the 1950s. However, it was a 1966 interpretation of the Mayan Long Count Calendar that seems to have taken the world by storm.

In 1966, Michael D. Coe wrote in his book, The Maya, that "there is a suggestion... that Armageddon would overtake the degenerate peoples of the world and all creation on the final day of the 13th b'ak'tun". According to the Mayan Long Count Calendar, we are currently in the 13th b'ak'tun. So, the big question is: What happens on the final day of the 13th b'ak'tun?

 

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