Is 2012 the End of the World?

I was shocked at the scenes of devastation in the movie 2012, as were many people around the world. However, I was more curious about the idea that the world will come to an end on December 21st, 2012, which was said to be prophesied by the Maya. Although it was a fabricated story and many specialists pointed out that it was pseudo-scientific, I was worried that what if it was true. And the strong curiosity that I always have for unknown things drove me to explore more about the 2012 phenomenon.

Before investigating the prophesy of apocalypse depicted in the movie, I wanted to familiarize myself with the people who supposedly made it. The Mayan civilization began around 1,000 B.C. and quickly grew in size and complexity, eventually becoming the dominant culture in Mexico and Central America. During their rule they developed a writing system, a distinct language, monumental architecture and sculpture, improved agriculture and established a calendrical system among the most accurate in the world. However, their prosperity came to an end around 900 A.D., and the civilization itself collapsed soon after.

The apocalypse saying is based on the Maya Long Count Calendar, which does not distinguish between historical time and mythical time. It records the elapsed days since the beginning of the “Great Cycle” in the distant past. According to the Maya creation myth in the Popol Vuh, the gods failed to create humans in the first three creations and what we are living in now is the fourth creation. According to a record on Stela C at the site of Copan, the fourth creation date is 7.16.6.16.18., which equates to August 13, 3,114 B.C. They predicted the fourth age will end 5,126 years later on December 21, 2012 and a new age will begin. This is where the Maya apocalypse saying comes from. However, the Maya only said December 21, 2012 was the end of the fourth creation, and implied that important events would happen on that day - it did not say the world will be destroyed.

So what of the disasters that happened around the world recently? Anthony Aveni, the Russell Colgate Distinguished University professor of astronomy and anthropology, mentions a theory which links the Long Count cycle and the precession of the equinoxes in his book The End of Time. The theory suggests that the 5,126-year Long Count creation cycle was geared to an alignment of the sun with the center of our Milky Way Galaxy, an alignment that occurs once every 26,000 years because of the precession of the equinoxes. I think this particular movement may cause the earth to be more active so that disasters happened more frequently. Moreover, this link may not be a coincidence but the result of the Maya’s accurate observations of the universe and mathematical computation. That is to say, the Long Count Calendar is based on their observations of the movements of stars and other celestial phenomenon.

In my opinion, according to what I have learned, 2012 will not be the end of the world. And I feel amazed by the Maya’s brilliant achievements and insights into the workings of the universe, and I am fascinated by their civilization. It seems that they have many secrets hidden in those accomplishments, and there may be many other things that they can tell us someday. There is just so much still for us to discover!