Will civilization as we know it end on December 21st 2012 as some followers of pre-Mayan culture believe? Organizers of the 2012 Conference, to be held on Saturday March 1, 2008 at the Ricardo Montalban Theatre in Hollywood, CA, are hoping that the experts they've gathered for it will shed light on the question.
Using the movements of the planets and stars as their guide, the ancient Maya civilization developed a complex system of three main interlocking calendars, the Tzolk'in, the Haab, and a cycle known as the Long Count. There's some debate as to how exactly the Maya calendar and our own Gregorian calendar sync up, but the consensus of opinion says the first 394 year cycle of the Long Count calendar began on August 11, 3114 B.C., and that the thirteenth, and final, cycle is set to end on the December solstice of 2012.
What happens after this highly significant date is up for debate, hence the conference. Some say 2012 will mark the end of the world, while others believe that the Long Count was intended to work like an odometer in a car, and that it should be reset and counting should start again from zero come 2012.
While it's uncertain whether 2012 marks an end or a new beginning, we'll be hedging our bets and plan to celebrate Christmas a few days early that year just in case. In the meantime we're planning to high tail it down to the 2012 Conference to see how experts such as Cuban American medical anthropologist and psychologist Dr. Alberto Villoldo, 2012: The Return of Quetzalcoatl author Daniel Pinchbeck, Timewave 2013 filmmakers Sharron Rose and Jay Weidner, and leading Mesoamerican cosmology expert John Major Jenkins think we should prepare for the impending shift.
Great article. I hope to make it to the conference. What exactly is going to happen when the Mayan calendar ends? Only time will tell. Be smart... be ready. For everything to survive 2012 and beyond visit www.2012Supplies.com
For more videos about 2012 check out www.2012Videos.com
author Daniel Pinchbeck, 
