I’ve never been a believer in doomsday scenarios. And the Mayans were not predicting the end of the world with their calendar cycle – just the end of the “Long Count” – a cycle of time spanning around 5125 years. The Mayans believe we are in the 12th cycle (bak’tun) which will end tonight and the 13th cycle will start tomorrow on the 21st.

Interestingly here are some dates and events (as noted at http://mayan-calendar.com/ancient_longcount.html)

The beginning of the 8th bak’tun (41 AD)

The last of the Olmec cities, some surviving for almost 1000 years, were abandoned and never reinhabited.

The beginning of the 9th bak’tun (435 AD)

Teotihuacan’s influence began in the Maya world, resulting new cities, a flurry of new dynasties, and warfare.

The beginning of the 10th bak’tun (830 AD)

The end of the Classic period and the still unexplained abandonment of 100’s of cities.

The beginning of the 11th bak’tun (1224 AD)

The abandonment of Chichen Itza in Yucatan and the rise of Mayapan.

The beginning of the 12th bak’tun (1618 AD)

The last great Maya empire, the Itza of Lake Peten, sent emissaries to the Spanish announcing they are ready to embrace the change the turn of cycles will bring.

The ancient Maya would have considered this 13th and last turn in the cycle of having even greater significance. Are we entering into a new golden age after a bit of cleaning out of the old energy?  There is a feeling that this is a crucial time for humanity – the next couple of decades anyway. I would call it an inflexion point in our evolution. Maybe the Mayans were onto something. However picking dates to support a view is easy pie. Some note that the Mayans saw these turns as times of celebration; much like the party at the year 2000. So tomorrow I will be saying a prayer at our sacred tree for the start of the 13th bak’tun and also for the solstice. Happy days.