The Mayan calendar, catastrophism, and all that jazz...

An idea struck me earlier today, and the more I've thought about it, the more I wanted to get other ATS'ers view on it. I know this scenario contains a lot of "ifs" and assumptions, so bear with me.

A lot of people believe that human civilization has buiilt itself up to great heights only to be, for whatever reason, knocked back down into the stone age. Coming with this is the belief that cultures such as the ancient Egyptions, the Maya, etcetera, are legacies of some great past civilization.

Our present technological culture is barely 200 years old, and the breakthroughs we're making escalate daily. Assume this past culture had thousands of years to study, and accumulate knowledge. The Egyptions said they'd seen the passing of two ages of Leo, which is roughly 26,000 years.

Also: A lot of people also believe the Mayan calendar predicts the end of the world (or the coming of Christ, or the coming of the aliens, or a catastrophe, etcetera). Assume the Mayan calendar is a relic from some great past civilization.

Also (I know, a lot of groundwork). Global warming is a hot controversy in current events, and people are bickering about the cause. Apparently Mars is also warming up at the same rate as Earth, which suggests a solar-system wide phenomenon.

There was an article in Scientific American recently which stated that with the rise in Earth's tempreture, we can expect larger, more frequent, and much more powerful hurricanes.

This groundwork brings me to my tenuous hypothesis. If a previous civilization had lasted thousands of years, they could have observed this phenomenon (namely, solar-system wide heating and cooling, and its subsequent impact upon the weather) and mapped it out on a calendar. All very precise and scientifically, without any mumbo-jumbo thrown in.

Perhaps this is the event, if such an event exists, predicted by the Mayan calendar set 2012. A hurricane spanning continents would drastically reshape the weather, and civilization. Think of the flood myths which are practically universal throughout ancient cultures, and how they might have come about. Such an event could easily be predicted by an advanced culture which had spanned thousands of years.

Anyway, that's the gist of the idea I had earlier. Lemme know what some of you think.

Im not sure what to add really? If you could pose a specific question that would be helpful, its just i don't know what point to reply too..

2012 is what its all about, IMO. However, its not just the exact date and time thats important, its the process leading up too it. Basically Earths magnetic field is decreasing, and will reach a zero point around 2012.. NASA has already said that the Suns magnetic poles will flip in 2012, and i expect the same to happen on the other planets in our solar system, including Earths.

I think its a chance for the individual, and the collective aswell, to take themselves beyond the limitations of 3rd dimensional existence. As we get closer to the zero point, more and more changes will be taking place on all levels (personal, family, social, collective etc), but at the same time, novelty will be decreasing, until the zero point, and it just "clicks"/you remember what life is all about.

Its hard to be certain about whats going to happen. It is very much a personal thing at the present time, but obviously as we get closer, the truth will become more evident, until finally no one can deny it, and you either go with the tide, or you drown by trying to fight the change. Unless of course, nothing happens, but i don't see that.. there is far too much pointing towards 2012.

IMHO its a process of learning. No one is forced to try, and you won't be damned if you fail.

Hypothetically speaking, what if those who don't "make it" still realise what its all about, and then they do a good deed of leaving future generations clues as to how to "escape" the cycle? If there was some kind of rapture (hate that term), and you missed it... sure you would be sad, but hopefully you would also feel empathy and maybe try to "warn" those in the future of this cycle, and give them hints as to what its all about..

I know for sure something is going to happen.. what exactly is the question. Maybe its a personal choice? Maybe everyone IS the centre of their own universe, and the future is up too them?

Who knows?