A Mayan great cycle culminates on December 21, 2012. There has been a lot of hype about this being the end of the world, which I do not believe. On this date that marks the end of one particular Mayan calendar, the Sun will also move into direct alignment with the equator of our Milky Way Galaxy, an alignment that occurs only once in every 26,000 years. To be more accurate, because the Sun’s disk as seen from Earth covers about a half a degree in width, the Sun’s disk at winter solstice makes this contact with the galactic center over a 36-year period from 1980 to 2016. Since the 1980s, the world has already gone through a deep transformation as the pace of life continues to speed up; the world population keeps on growing exponentially; and humanity has become increasingly connected through instantaneous worldwide communication, economic and social globalization, and ecological crisis. Perhaps 2012 is simply the peak of this massive wave of change, as many authors have speculated.

For years now, there has been much conjecture about the 2012 shift. Many extreme  theories have been circulated. These include a mass kundalini awakening and a worldwide leap into higher dimensional consciousness; mind-boggling scientific and technological breakthroughs that will almost instantly transform the world; full disclosure of UFOS and ETs; energy supply disruptions that occur at the same time that a new energy source is discovered; the fall of civilization and the emergence of a new utopian world order; a devastating magnetic pole shift; cataclysmic seismic upheavals; the total collapse of the global economy; mass extermination of large numbers of the world population through global epidemic, planned extinction by a secret government, a weapon of mass destruction, asteroid or catastrophic solar flares; the emergence of a great world teacher or teachers, as in the return of Quetzalcoatl; and so on.

Extreme theories aside, is there something going on with the 2012 shift? Why do so many of us feel a quickening in the midst of so much uncertainty? Is this just the power of suggestion or is there an actual energy shift taking place? I feel that it is the latter case. Scientists agree that immense magnetic changes are occurring at this time on our planet and in our solar system. Scientist and visionary author Gregg Braden explains in Awakening to Zero Point that the background base frequency of the Earth, known as the Schumann Resonance or Earth’s “heartbeat,” is growing stronger. This could have a part to play in climate change as well as in dramatic seismic and meteorological events. At the same time as the Earth’s heartbeat is intensifying, the Earth’s magnetic field is declining, and the Sun and the other planets of our solar system are also going through a massive magnetic alteration.

In The Mystery of 2012, “Choice Point 2012: Our Date with the Window of Emergence” (pp 1-15), Braden describes scientific research behind the idea that our brains are made of magnetic particles, which is why magnetism affects us so profoundly while also connecting us with one another. According to Braden, as our planetary magnetic field changes, this influences our nervous systems, our immune systems, and most importantly, our perception of reality. Braden describes areas of the world that have the weakest magnetic fields as being places where innovative change happens most quickly and frequently, so from this he infers that a weakening magnetic field on the planet may indicate a global consciousness shift. Tying this in with quantum physics principles, Braden believes that 2012 may be a “choice point” when more and more people wake up and realize that we can change the reality of our world by changing our thoughts.

Though 2012 may be a “choice point,” it is not yet the Golden Age. In fact, according to some calculations, we won’t even be in the Age of Aquarius for some five hundred more years. Using yugas (cycles) ascribed by the late Swami Sri Yukteswar, the Earth is currently in an ascending cycle of Dwarpara Yuga, the Age of Knowledge and Technology. Every day, progress is being made, though there is real danger unless we find a way to balance technology with a more harmonious global vision. According to Sri Yukteswar’s calculations, the Sat Yuga (the Age of Truth and Enlightenment), is still some 5500 years in the future, so we are a long way from the awakening of humanity. The good news is that for an individual following the true spiritual path, Sat Yuga can arrive in advance!

So please don’t worry that 2012 will bring an end to the world. Yes, there are enormous changes happening for sure. In A World in Transition, Paramahansa Yogananda says that the end of the world comes about in two forms, partial and complete dissolution: “…it will be a long, long time before we can expect complete dissolution.” He also explains that the Divine Power has ultimate sovereignty over the negative power: “In spite of all the ruthless, desecrating ways in which man has wrought destruction in God’s creation, still we will find that evil destroys itself, and that the power of God marches on in the face of every opposition.” In the same book, Sri Daya Mata instructs, “Don’t be discouraged by this ‘doom and gloom’; it will pass. The more we take our minds away from the body’s attachments to this sphere, the more we can lift our consciousness into that divine kingdom.”

In The Mystery of 2012, “An Awakening World” (pp 251-263), Sufi teacher Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee writes about the possibility of transforming the chaos in the world through awakening global oneness:

We are the light of the world; we carry the consciousness of life’s highest purpose within the light of our true being. It is present in every breath…The awakening of the light of the world is our own as we wake up to our own essential nature and purpose, to the prime knowing that we are one…How do we participate in this work [of cocreating the evolution of global oneness]? We start by simply returning our attention to life itself, away from all the distractions and false images of life we have created for ourselves. Simple practices of awareness can help…Simple acts of loving kindness toward others…The “Practice of the Presence of God” described by Brother Lawrence in which one does one’s daily actions in the awareness of God’s presence, reaffirms the divine in daily life.

The point is—which all the greatest spiritual masters have taught, is that we make the world with our thoughts and actions. So even if certain astral weather predictions sound dire, that is only one possible view of how the karma can transpire if we don’t make the necessary shifts within ourselves. Perhaps one of the most important realizations of the 2012 shift is that we can change reality when we each heal our individual consciousness. I have no doubt that there are more hopeful possibilities for the immediate future if many of us can engage our free will in harmony with the Divine Will to transform consciousness on this planet. As we move into the last quarter of 2012, I continue to hold that vision.