I just read a string of comments from Erik Davis' piece about 2012 on http://www.realitysandwich.com. The comments are from some of the contributors and very well-informed people on the subject of 2012, and all of the lore, theories, misunderstandings, etc. surrounding the new age version of "the rapture."
Regardless of my view that much of the interest in 2012 is an attempt for our current sub-culture to find meaning and direction in this apocalyptic time, my intuition tells me that the Maya were really on to something. The research and study of people like John Major Jenkins and others appear to be grounded in clear minded study of the work, philosophy and practices of the Maya both ancient and modern-day in Guatamala.
Furthermore, he mentions an ancient Mayan site called Izapa which he calls "Stonehenge on steroids" in reference to its extremely sophisticated astronomical and mathematical attributes.
He states:
"My own focus is on reconstructing the original 2012 cosmology, utilizing data from the site that invented the 2012 calendar. That seems self-evidently worthwhile and reasonable enough, right? But how often do you hear Izapa mentioned in the same breath as 2012? Can the galactic alignment, which empirically occurs in the alignment zone 1980 to 2016 AD, trigger change and shifts in consciousness? I don't know, maybe. Why don't scientists take a look? Because they are so turned off by how the 2012 topic is constantly framed through distorted filters - scientists can't even get a handle on what the galactic alignment is. Kudos to Ben Anastas at the New York Times for framing the topic in, finally, a more or less accurate way, and giving some acknowledgment to the pioneering work I've done. Now, having said all that, in regard to the changes happening on the planet, isn't it interesting that the galactic alignment - a once in a 26,000-year alignment - happens during an exceedingly bizarre period of human history (1980 - 2016 AD)?"
I am heartened by his comments and his attempts to sift through all the noise and get to a clearer sense of what the Maya saw, and what it means - if anything for us today.
Naturally, it appears that humans are undergoing some form of evolutionary and transformative journey during this period of history. Mainly because we are becoming more and more aware of the negative impact we have on the life support system on the planet, and that in order to stop the damage we need to collectively shift into an entirely different mode of being. Doesn't it appear that we are in some form of "evolve or die" scenario?
What does this evolutionary shift consist of?
Almost every spiritual teacher who I have met has said some form of "The problems in our world are a projection of the problems inside our hearts and minds. If we deal with the inner world, the reality of the outer world will shift."
I have had a number of conversations with people who's wisdom I respect who have said more-or less the same that the hallmark of this time is that we are individually and collectively to do our "shadow work" to serve, and co-create this evolutionary experiment on our Mother Earth.
One of the conclusions that John Major Jenkins made is consistent with this - I'll let his words speak for themselves:
"The ancient Maya encoded into their traditions a belief that such a time would be attended by transformation and renewal, but, following the teaching in their creation myth, the outcome is ultimately a function of to what degree we, and all beings suffering from ego limitation, can sacrifice our illusions - the illusions that keep consciousness fixated to states of self delusion. That topic is best reserved for another day."
Well, today I would say that the work has always been here, 2012 or not. For most humans, regardless of where we have lived in this space/time map called Earth, the experience we create for ourselves is determined by the degree to which we can transcend our limitations and live in a more integrated/holistic/spiritual/evolved state of being.
Conversations and concerns about 2012, the Maya, prophecy, etc which do not include the basics of inner work are simply skipping across the surface.
John Major Jenkins subsequently wrote another article this week on 2012 and the role that Izapa played in forming the Mayan thought of 2012. He postulates that psychedelics played a significant role in shaping the cosmology of the Mayan, which interestingly echoes view similar to those of modern theoretical physics.
He writes "This philosophical model developed by Mesoamericans thinkers is actually extremely progressive, for modern physicists also describe a network of threadlike links between distant places, quantum “wormholes” in spacetime that tunnel through a higher dimension. Physicists even joke about making faster-than-lightspeed journeys to distant stars by accessing these holes in space."
"....What I’ve termed a “galactic cosmology” is named so not simply because it utilizes the galaxy as an armature of the sky’s shifting, but because it perceives human evolution from a heightened, enlarged, galactic level. After being lost for centuries, this galactic cosmovision is now reemerging. With its attendant spiritual teachings, it promises to help us restore our deep connection to nature, the universe, and our true selves."
Back to here/now - anyone talking about what we need to do today for 2013 and beyond? A question comes to mind - if the mayans were on to something, how are we to align with this phenomenon in ourselves and our world?
Or as Tyler Durden of Fight Club said "Evolve and let the chips fall where they may."
