The Complete Idiot's Guide to 2012 - Dr. Synthia Andrews Nd [46]
Here are the stars you’ll see from the northern hemisphere at noon local time on December 21, 2012.
However, there is another component. This alignment is eclipsed by the solstice sun. An eclipse is the movement of one object in front of another, “eclipsing” the view. Usually we think in terms of the moon eclipsing the sun, or Venus eclipsing the moon. In this case it’s the sun eclipsing the center of the Sacred Tree and the center of the galaxy. During the time of the eclipse, the emissions from the center of the galaxy will be interrupted. As the eclipse passes, the emissions will be resumed, but they will not be resumed in the present age. They will be resumed in the next age when the transformative power of the alignment with the Sacred Tree and the center of the galaxy will be felt. It’s the eclipse itself that marks the end of the Long Count calendar and the beginning of the next age.
Codex Cues
To learn more about the 2012 alignment, read Maya Cosmogenesis 2012 by John Major Jenkins (see Resources appendix).
Reality Check
All of this sounds impressive, but how certain is the timing of the alignment with the galactic equator? In his book Mathematical Astronomy Morsels (Willmann-Bell Publishing, 1997), astronomer Jean Meeus calculated when the precise center-point of the body of the sun would align with the galactic equator. His calculation was that the alignment would occur in 1998.
John Major Jenkins explains that since the sun occupies half a degree of space, it takes approximately 36 years for the sun to cross the galactic equator. Therefore, the “galactic alignment zone” is between 1980 through 2016 (1998 +/- 18 years). Theoretically, the alignment can take place any time during this period.
The exact date of December 21, 2012, comes from the Mayan calendar. Many feel the exact timing has too many variables for certainty. In the grand scheme of things, if the Maya were gearing their Long Count to this event, a 36-year range is pretty close! Many people think the precise date is not as significant as the time period itself. They point to a process of change over time as opposed to cataclysmic change. The exact nature of the change is twofold: the destruction of the old age and the transformation into a new, better age.
Mythological Crossing Point
The importance of the crossing of the Sacred Tree is shown throughout the Mayan culture. We saw it in the creation story and in the way the Maya centered their towns, cities, temples, and homes. Now we may see a new significance. Remember Pacal’s tomb from Chapter 3? As the sun sets, rays of light move through a doorway such that light descends the stairway disappearing into Pacal’s tomb. While the lighting effects depict the descent of Lord Pacal into the underworlds, the lid of the tomb has even more significance. The lid is thought by some to symbolize the events of December 21, 2012.
Lord Pacal Votan is the central figure on the lid of the tomb. You may remember that Pacal Votan brought wisdom and enlightenment to his people. He was believed to be a reincarnation of the god Votan and after his death and descent into the underworlds he was resurrected to the sky. The picture of him on the lid shows a picture of the Sacred Tree of Life extending from his umbilicus. Many Mayan stories represent the Sacred Tree as an umbilical cord because of the way it nourishes the realms. The Mayan word for Lord also means sun. Some researchers believe this image shows the alignment of the sun with the Sacred Tree at the end of the Long Count calendar.
The myth of Pacal Votan tells us he started as human and was elevated in the course of his life to sky-god. Some believe this represents the double nature of the end times: a destruction of the