December 21, 2012

At approximately 11:11 GMT (05:11 CST), the winter solstice will have occurred. Predictions abound for a multitude of scenarios. Most predictions, easily accessible on the interweb, can easily be discounted because they are proffered by nutjobs. Sifting through it all to come up with any type of credible and substantial information is, however, fun. And harrowing.

Let me explain. Persons far smarter than myself (and anyone that I associate with) have developed theories of expectation for that date. Let's start with the entire Mayan civilization. They were the first humans to come up with the theory and concept of '0' in mathematics. They developed a highly technical calendar (Mesoamerican Long Count Calendar) that has spanned the entirety of our human history, (August 11, 3114 BCE Gregorian or August 6, 3114 BCE Julian) in terms of events astrological. That date, in the long count, representing the 'Creation Day' is listed as 0.0.0.0.0. Using the Goodman, Martinez, Thompson GMT Correlation, today, April 21, 2008, is represented as 12.19.15.4.15 in the long count. It continues to predict events that occur in the current day. That is, until December 21, 2012, (13.0.0.0.0).

Why is it that the Mayan Calendar ends on that date? There is speculation about that. According to the Popol Vuh, a book compiling details of creation accounts known to the K'iche' Maya of the Colonial-era highlands, we are living in the fourth world. The Popol Vuh describes the first three creations that the gods failed in making and the creation of the successful fourth world where men were placed. In the Maya Long Count, the previous creation ended at the start of a 13th b'ak'tun.

The previous creation ended on a long count of 12.19.19.17.19. Another 12.19.19.17.19 will occur on December 20, 2012, followed by the start of the thirteenth b'ak'tun, 13.0.0.0.0, on December 21, 2012.

And while the calendar, in its entirety, ceases to progress past that date, there are instances, in writings and inscriptions, that use long count to go far beyond that date. One such instance, predicted by the king Pacal of Palenque, references 1.0.0.0.0.8 (21 October 4772), as the 80th Calendar Round anniversary of his ascension. His prediction of celebration on this day clearly shows he doesn't believe the world will cease to exist on December 21, 2012. But then, king Pacal could just have been one of the greatest narcissists to ever live. Who am I to judge?

As the long calendar has been a faithful predictor of astrological events, what significant event is scheduled to occur on December 21, 2012 at precisely 11:11GMT? It will be the first time, in 26,000 years, that the Milky Way galaxy, usually viewed slightly askew from our perspective here on Earth, will be aligned in perfect symmetry with our sun.

Modern physicists, chief among them, Albert Einstein, have offered such predictions for this date as a polar shift, where South becomes North and vice-versa, leading to a host of catastrophic events. It's also interesting to note that Einstein offered predictions for the human race, once bee colonies began to disappear. This, you may remember, started last year. His prediction? Once the colonies disappear, humans are only 4 years behind them. As pollination decreases and disappears, so do our food sources. Famine and , as a result, wars increase. We either starve to death or destroy ourselves in the effort to avoid that horrible end. Or behind door #2? Soylent Green.

Still others offer more positive possibilities for that date. They believe, when everything is aligned, that the human race will transcend our current existence to exist on a new and different plane. A humanists rapture, perhaps.

Whatever we are to expect, the study is, as noted above, interesting. I am not offering this entry as an academic exercise. My research, consisting of documentaries, first hand study in Mexico, online resources, et al., was not properly documented, and so, I offer no notations. That being said, the section regarding the Popol Voh, was lifted almost entirely from a Wikipedia entry, (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesoamerican_Long_Count_calendar), but, it does correspond to information that I learned, while in Mexico, last summer, specifically at Monte Alban, a very sacred place of the ancient Maya.

In your own research on the topic, be wary that there are, as also noted above, totally psychotic individuals that will throw about talk of conspiracy, alien intervention, etc. All I am imploring is that you take each encounter with this topic, including this entry, with a grain of salt.

Until Next Time,