Maya 2012 predictions
End of the World, or New Era?
Doomsday predictions have been around since the dawn of time, but few are as mysterious as the end of the Maya calendar. While some scientists claim there is no reason to fear, the question lingers: Will 2012 mark the end of the world?
As the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans were to the Mediterranean world, the ancient Mayas were the most literate ancient society of the Americas. They produced countless books, built Maya temples and inscribed impressive monuments with records of their achievements and political histories.
The Maya created a cyclical calendar, or “long count” with which they kept the dates of their achievements. And on Dec. 21, 2012 the Maya long count calendar completes its 13th great cycle or B’ak’tun after nearly 52,000 years.
Calendar cycle or Hollywood hype?
Internet hype might have you believe the 2012 winter solstice marks the end for us all. Some websites even offer Maya 2012 countdown clocks and apocalypse survival kits, but modern Belize Mayas don’t concern themselves with the end of time.
Who does? Well, Hollywood, for starters. The movie 2012 presented a cinematic depiction of the apocalypse, but does it address any reality?
“The reality is that the Mayas did keep track of large cycles of time, and there is a large cycle of time that began in 3013 B.C. on our calendar, and there are reasons to think that the cycle reaches a significant number on Dec. 21, 2012,” John Hoopes, a scholar of Maya history at the University of Kansas, said in an interview with Live Science.
Belize Mayas tended to see time as cyclical. In that light, the “end” of the calendar might be only a new beginning.
Scientists say that ancient Belize Maya had an amazing understanding of astronomy and that is precisely where fringe believers have drawn their connections to potential modern-day implications.
The Maya long count calendar may not predict the end of the world, but it does predict a particularly infrequent alignment of the sun, earth and Milky Way galaxy. Scientists are quick to dispel any implications that this alignment would spell doom if it ever occurred.
“There are no planetary alignments in the next few decades, earth will not cross the galactic plane in 2012, and even if these alignments were to occur, their effects on the earth would be negligible,” according to NASA. “Each December the earth and sun align with the approximate center of the Milky Way Galaxy but that is an annual event of no consequence.”
Be one with Belize Mayas
Throughout Belize, the heartland of the ancient Maya and the contemporary home to ancestors of the culture, you can tour magnificent Belize sites or talk to modern day Mayas. The ancient Maya were the scholars and scientists of the region, pioneering mathematical, writing and astronomical systems that still produce intellectual awe today.
From hieroglyphs inscribed on ancient temples, clues revealed in recently unearthed ceremonial caves, to many rich artifacts found throughout Belize and the living oral traditions of the modern day Maya. Belize is where a world of discovery and extraordinary experiences await.
As with any story, there are multiple sides. Some seem sure about the meaning of the Maya calendar, while others are open to interpretation. Draw your own conclusions when you explore Belize, the heartland of Maya culture.
Visit the official Maya 2012 website to learn more about the mysterious Maya calendar.