End of Our Time

For those who embrace the concept of the end of the world occurring on the 21^st of December, 2012…that would be…well…today.   The 2012 phenomenon comprises a range of eschatological beliefs, (meaning the study of the end of the world) according to which cataclysmic or transformative events will occur on 21 December 2012. This date is regarded as the end-date of a 5125-year-long cycle in the Mesoamerican Long Count Calendar (aka the Maya Calendar.) Various astronomical alignments and numerological formulae have been proposed as pertaining to this date, though none have been accepted by mainstream scholarship.

   A New Age interpretation of this transition has been that the date marks the start of time in which Earth and its inhabitants may undergo a positive physical or spiritual transformation, and 21 December 2012 may mark the beginning of a new era. Others suggest that the date marks the end of the world or a similar catastrophe. Scenarios suggested for the end of the world include the arrival of the next solar maxium (great solar activity that we have been experiencing actually since 2009) an interaction between Earth and the black hole at the center of the galaxy, (some named it Hank…just kidding, everyone knows it’s called Eddy) or Earth's collision with a planet called Nibiru. 

(An idea whose predication of a 2003 has passed, but the namesake lingers on.  Some claim that might just be the DA14 asteroid with an estimated diameter of about 45 meters that was discovered on February 23, 2012. It is predicted to come extremely close to earth, closer than satellites in geosynchronous orbit.  Some still,conjecture an impact on February 16, 2013, while some suggest perhaps 2026 a greater chance.)

     Scholars from various disciplines have dismissed the idea of such cataclysmic events occurring in 2012. Professional Mayanist scholars state that predictions of impending doom are not found in any of the extant classic Maya accounts, and that the idea that the Long Count calendar "ends" in 2012 misrepresents Maya history and culture, (but we really, really like Hollywood drama endings don’t we?)  While astronomers have rejected the various proposed doomsday scenarios as pseudoscience (looks like science without the dedication to facts) stating that they conflict with simple astronomical observations.

  "My grandfather told me that there will be a change after the New Year," says Jeremias Kulaak Pall, who has just grown out of his teens and is a bona-fide Mayan descendent.
"He says that there will be more peace and prosperity going forward, so I think we should look forward to it."
This cheerful perspective actually lines up neatly with what archeologists and anthropologists say about the significance of this New Year. On or around the solstice, the b'ak'tun, a Maya measurement of time roughly equal to 394 years, will end. The end of this period is traditionally interpreted as a time of significant change.
   For years now I’ve toyed with the idea that we do not comprehend what the end of the world could actually mean.  Perhaps not the end of the planet or life on it, but OUR WORLD, as it is organized in its current fashion change.  What if the end does not mean cataclysm but an enlightenment?  Wouldn’t that be just

Swell.