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Ancient calendars forecasting
a deadly countdown.

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ED BARNHART: The Maya have
this opinion that what's

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happened in the past
will happen again.

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NARRATOR: A galactic alignment,

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triggering a wave of natural disasters.

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MICHAEL DENNIN: It's like
having a whole bunch of massive

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earthquakes at the same time.

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NARRATOR: Could our planet
really be headed for extinction?

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LOGAN HAWKES: These changes
could be life-changing or they

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could be life-ending.

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NARRATOR: Or is there another
agenda, one even more profound?

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PHILIP COPPENS: Each age for the
Mayans was clearly defined.

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And it was defined by
the gods returning.

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NARRATOR: Millions of people
around the world believe we have

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been visited in the past by
extraterrestrial beings.

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What if it were true?

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Did ancient aliens really
help to shape our history?

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And if so, might evidence of
alien contact help to unlock the

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mystery behind the Mayan
prophecies of doom?

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Sync and corrections by bellows
www.addic7ed.com

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NARRATOR: Mexico, the
Yucatan Peninsula.

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For over 2,000 years,
rain-drenched jungles and

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fertile plains served as the
home of one of the ancient

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world's greatest civilizations.

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The Maya.

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Scholars estimate that between
250 and 900 A.D., the Mayan

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population consisted of between
15 to 20 million people,

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and extended as far south as
Costa Rica and Guatemala.

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Archeological evidence suggests
the Maya were one of the first

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ancient people to develop a
written language, use modern

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mathematical methods, and build
massive, multi-story celestial

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observatories.

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All at a time when Europeans
were struggling through the

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so-called Dark Ages.

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SEAN-DAVID MORTON: The Maya
are considered one of the great

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advanced civilizations with
hyper-advanced astronomy,

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astronomy, trigonometry,
architecture, all of these

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things while the Europeans were at
the time rolling around in the mud.

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NARRATOR: But perhaps the most
amazing Mayan achievement

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was their system of charting the
stars and planets in the form of

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a calendar.

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HAWKES: The Mayans were timekeepers
above and beyond all other things.

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Keeping up with time was magic,
it was power to the Mayans.

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MARK VAN STONE: They were
tracking, in particular, Venus,

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the phases of the moon,
eclipses, but they also tracked

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precession, which is an
extraordinarily long cycle.

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What it means is that every year
on, say, March 15, the Pleiades

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rise for the first time in the sky.

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If you wait 72 years, the day of
the rising of the Pleiades will

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be one day earlier.

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If you wait another 72 years,
it'll be a day earlier still.

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And if you wait 26,000 years,
the Pleiades will move back to

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that same day.

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NARRATOR: According to scholars,
the Maya believed that

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time, like the stars, moved
in repeating patterns called

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calendar cycles and that these cycles
could be used to predict future events.

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One of these calendar cycles,
the Mayan Long Count, lasts for

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5,125 years and will end
on December 21, 2012.

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But why?

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Why did the Maya choose this date?

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And what did they believe
would happen to our world?

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Perhaps a clue can be found
in an astronomical phenomenon

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located at the center of the
Milky Way Galaxy, an area where

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there are no stars.

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MORTON: The Mayans knew.

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Not only did they know where the
center of the galaxy was, but

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they understood that it was a
light-year-across black hole

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that they called the Great Rift.

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HAWKES: The Maya believed this
was the birth canal of the

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universe, and that all things came
from the birth canal of the universe.

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And on December 21, 2012, the
Earth, the sun, and this birth

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canal, the Dark Rift, are
all in perfect alignment.

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And this only happens
every 26,000 years.

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NARRATOR: Could the fact that
the Maya Long Count calendar

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ends on the same day as this
rare alignment in the Milky Way

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Galaxy be a mere coincidence?

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And did this advanced
understanding of celestial

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cycles really come from ancient
Mayan astronomers observing the

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stars with only their naked eyes?

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HAWKES: The Mayans believed that
this knowledge came to them

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from their gods, and their gods
then existed in the stars.

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So, is it possible that these gods
could have been extraterrestrials?

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The answer to that question
is yes, it's possible.

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GIORGIO TSOUKALOS:
According to the Maya

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themselves, this knowledge was

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not something that they came up
with, but it was given to them

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as a gift from the gods.

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The gift back then was
not material stuff.

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It was knowledge.

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Knowledge is the currency
of the universe.

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NARRATOR: But even if the
information pertaining to the

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Long Count calendar comes
from an otherworldly or

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extraterrestrial source,
why 2012?

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What is it about this date that
has a special significance?

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Researchers believe a clue may
recently have been found among

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the ruins of the ancient
Mayan city of Tortuguero.

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One that was pieced together
from broken fragments of a panel

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of hieroglyphs known as
Monument Number Six.

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BARNHART: In my opinion,
the one and only clear

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reference to the date in the
Long Count that arrives in 2012

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is on Tortuguero Monument Six.

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COPPENS: Basically, the
inscription in Tortuguero

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was half destroyed, and
everybody assumed that what it

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was saying was that the nine
gods would return on December

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21, 2012, but because there
was some destruction on that

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inscription, certain
things were implied.

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NARRATOR: For years, scholars
dismissed the evidence

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found at the Tortuguero monument
as a solitary anomaly without

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any special significance.

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But on November 24, 2011, the
Mexican National Institute of

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Archeology and History revealed to the
world the existence of a

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second artifact.

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A sun-dried mud brick that was
discovered at the ancient Mayan

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city of Comalcalco with an
inscription many believe refers

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to an exact date, December 21, 2012.

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BARNHART: It's one of
thousands of mud bricks that

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we've found at Comalcalco.

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A very few of them have
hieroglyphs on them.

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One of them has a date inscribed
on it, which is very rare, and

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it says Four Ahau, Three Konkin,
which is the calendar round date

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that's gonna occur in 2012.

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COPPENS: Well, the Comalcalco
brick is important because it is

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verification of an
inscription in Tortuguero.

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The brick has shown that the
people who thought that it meant

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the nine gods were going
to return were right.

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NARRATOR: An
extraterrestrial visitation?

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One which signals the
end of the world?

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For most archeologists and
researchers, the concept is not

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just a little far-fetched,
they consider it to be more a

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curiosity than a prophecy.

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But one feature of the brick
hieroglyph is not so easy to dismiss.

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The inscriptions on the brick
were apparently carved on the

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inner-facing side,
hidden from view.

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HAWKES: Why would they write a
date on a brick and then turn

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it around so no one could see
it and put it into the wall?

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We can only speculate as to why,
but we believe it's because the

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ruling king or the priest
or whoever commissioned the

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building site at Comalcalco didn't
want that to be public knowledge.

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NARRATOR: Why would the Maya
conspire to keep this date secret?

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Was it to avoid global panic?

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DAVID CHILDRESS: If there is some
kind of... (loud boom)

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doomsday at the end of the
Mayan calendar, it could be a

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combination of...
of pole shifts... (rumbling)

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of volcanoes and earthquakes...

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and super tidal waves
all over the Earth.

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It would be a catastrophic
event for the planet.

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NARRATOR: Is it really
possible, as ancient astronaut

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theorists believe, that the
Maya actually received detailed

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astronomical knowledge from
ancient alien visitors?

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And could this help explain why
their calendar, which accurately

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predicts an extraordinary
galactic alignment, apparently

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ends on December 21, 2012?

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Perhaps the answer can be found
by examining the doomsday

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prophecies of other
ancient cultures.

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For if the Maya were attempting
to warn us of a future

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cataclysm, could there be other
evidence that they were not alone?

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NARRATOR: December 21, 2012.

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According to some researchers
and scholars, this is the day

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when the Mayan calendar suggests
the world will come to an end.

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(loud boom)

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But there is another equally
curious aspect to the Mayan

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calendar...not when it ends,
but when it begins:

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More than 3,000 years before the
Mayan civilization even existed.

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BARNHART: The origin of the
Long Count Calendar... why they

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created day one to be August 13,
3114 BC, is still a mystery.

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It's obviously back-dated.

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There were no Maya back then, so
why did they backward project

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3,000 years into the past?

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Based on the things we have
learned about the Maya, it

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should be something astronomical.

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HUGH NEWMAN: One of the ideas
about why they back-dated it to

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3114 BC is because some kind
of cataclysm happened then.

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Recent research has discovered
an asteroid or multiple

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asteroids did hit an area
around Austria in Europe.

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(loud booming)

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And that could have caused a
blackout of the sky for several

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years, and this is, then,
when the calendar began.

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MORTON: Scientists at Harvard
and Princeton have said that

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this massive global worldwide catastrophe...
a mass glaciation

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of the planet, occurred when this
age of the Mayan calendar begins.

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This happened not within tens of
thousands of years or hundreds

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of years, but within weeks,
within days, literally.

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This took everyone by surprise.

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CHILDRESS: According to the
Mayans, we are coming to the end

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of the fifth age.

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There have been four
catastrophes before us.

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Each one ended up with a
destruction of the Earth.

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And now we are just coming to
the end of the fifth age of the

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Mayans, which will end
now in December of 2012.

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According to the Mayan
predictions, this will also end

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in a giant catastrophe.

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(loud booming)

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BARNHART: The Western view
of time is very linear.

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When we think about... life...

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we see it as this linear projection
heading out into the future.

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For the Maya, they viewed
life very cyclically.

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NARRATOR: Is it possible the
Mayan calendar ends on December

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21, 2012 because they expected
that the fifth age of man will

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end much in the same
way as it began?

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Were they privy to some ancient
knowledge that has been lost in time?

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And if so, can proof be found
by examining similar doomsday

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predictions from other
ancient cultures?

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MORTON: Egyptian time-coding in
the Great Pyramid of Giza is

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telling us that there will
be a series of water-based

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catastrophes between late 2004
through about 2006, and look

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what happened.

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We have the Asian tsunami, which
kills about 250,000 people.

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We have Hurricane Katrina.

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(thunder crashes)

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And then there's actually this
trough called the "River of

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Fire" which is warning us of
some massive cosmic event, maybe

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a solar flare or what have you, that
then washes humanity back

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into this pit.

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NARRATOR: In addition to the
eerie similarity between the

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Mayan and Egyptian prophecies,

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researchers have also noticed
a connection in the doomsday

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predictions of the Hopi Indians
of the American Southwest.

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YOUNG: The Hopi people of the
Native American nations believe

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that we are in the fifth age of
man and that this is an age of

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purification and that it
is near the end time.

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MORTON: The Hopi believe that
unless all the people of the

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Earth can come down and live
more in harmony with themselves

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and with the planet, that
there's going to be a great

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destruction coming.

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(rumbling)

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NARRATOR: In India, the
ancient Buddhist and Hindu

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astronomical manuscript, Surya...
Siddhanta, predicts that

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mankind will soon reach the end of
the Kali Yuga, the final age of man.

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YOUNG: The male divinity, Kali,
that is referred to in the

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End of Days of the Mahabharata,
refers to a time of great chaos

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and discord, and, depending on
how you read the dating in the

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00:16:19,042 --> 00:16:21,043
script, we are well into it.

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00:16:26,081 --> 00:16:30,551
NARRATOR: Even the Christian
Bible predicts, in great detail,

234
00:16:30,586 --> 00:16:33,354
a horrific, fiery apocalypse.

235
00:16:33,923 --> 00:16:37,491
YOUNG: The Christian writers
on the end of time focus on

236
00:16:37,527 --> 00:16:41,228
certain things: that the Jewish
people return to the Holy Land

237
00:16:41,264 --> 00:16:45,966
and reclaim it, which happened
some years ago; that the nation

238
00:16:46,002 --> 00:16:49,804
thereby established would
finally claim Jerusalem, which

239
00:16:49,839 --> 00:16:51,639
has happened some years ago;

240
00:16:51,674 --> 00:16:55,476
That there would be a great
expansion of the territory until

241
00:16:55,511 --> 00:16:57,647
it was a very large nation.

242
00:16:59,682 --> 00:17:03,350
Finally, it is the claiming of
the temple, which is on Temple

243
00:17:03,386 --> 00:17:06,353
Mount, which is holy in Islam.

244
00:17:06,389 --> 00:17:10,523
But it must be taken and restored
to its original condition.

245
00:17:10,593 --> 00:17:13,694
It is that place that the
Messiah will actually come to

246
00:17:13,730 --> 00:17:17,763
rule the Earth before the End of Days.

247
00:17:19,035 --> 00:17:22,970
COPPENS: The idea that we are
living in end times, not

248
00:17:23,005 --> 00:17:24,638
necessarily the end of the world

249
00:17:24,674 --> 00:17:27,773
but the end of a world,
is quite global.

250
00:17:33,215 --> 00:17:36,851
NARRATOR: While most ancient
doomsday prophecies only broadly

251
00:17:36,886 --> 00:17:40,689
suggest the timing of the
so-called End of Days...

252
00:17:42,225 --> 00:17:46,694
the Maya prediction boldly
points to an exact date.

253
00:17:46,929 --> 00:17:51,499
Their Long Count Calendar comes
to a decisive end on Friday,

254
00:17:51,534 --> 00:17:57,538
December 21, 2012, a date that
many scientists and astronomers

255
00:17:57,573 --> 00:18:01,509
agree will coincide with an
extremely rare alignment of

256
00:18:01,544 --> 00:18:04,812
celestial bodies in
the Milky Way Galaxy.

257
00:18:05,448 --> 00:18:09,551
But how could the Mayan
calendar be so accurate?

258
00:18:10,453 --> 00:18:13,888
BARNHART: It is a true thing to
say about the Maya that they

259
00:18:13,956 --> 00:18:18,592
created the most elaborate calendar
system of any culture in the world.

260
00:18:18,728 --> 00:18:21,195
They had a solar calendar, but
before that, they had the

261
00:18:21,230 --> 00:18:22,730
sacred calendar.

262
00:18:23,232 --> 00:18:27,067
When you look at the ratio
between those two, you get

263
00:18:27,103 --> 00:18:33,439
365.2422 days for an actual year.

264
00:18:33,810 --> 00:18:40,047
The atomic clock says that it's
365.2420, but they admit that

265
00:18:40,082 --> 00:18:44,118
at the fourth decimal point,
they could be plus or minus

266
00:18:44,153 --> 00:18:45,753
five wrong.

267
00:18:45,788 --> 00:18:48,255
So we're not sure
who's more accurate.

268
00:18:48,291 --> 00:18:50,357
Is it the Maya, or is
it the atomic clock?

269
00:18:52,662 --> 00:18:55,930
NEWMAN: The sophisticated way
the Maya track time is...

270
00:18:55,998 --> 00:18:58,465
is incredible, even
by today's standards.

271
00:18:58,501 --> 00:19:00,935
It's almost like they had
sophisticated computer technologies

272
00:19:01,003 --> 00:19:03,703
or programs that could
somehow run it.

273
00:19:03,773 --> 00:19:06,273
And even today, we're just
catching up and trying to

274
00:19:06,342 --> 00:19:09,810
understand how they managed to
do such an amazing job way back

275
00:19:09,846 --> 00:19:10,813
in prehistory.

276
00:19:12,515 --> 00:19:16,116
NARRATOR: The third Maya
calendar, known as the Long

277
00:19:16,185 --> 00:19:23,923
Count, measured time in cycles
of 394 years or 144,000 days.

278
00:19:24,527 --> 00:19:26,126
GERARDO ALDANA: The Long
Count is really just like an

279
00:19:26,195 --> 00:19:27,494
odometer in your car.

280
00:19:27,530 --> 00:19:28,662
It just ticks off days.

281
00:19:28,698 --> 00:19:31,498
It counts one, two, three, all
the way up to 144,000, which we

282
00:19:31,534 --> 00:19:33,534
call bak'tuns.

283
00:19:33,536 --> 00:19:37,972
NARRATOR: The Maya Long Count
calendar also measured time in a

284
00:19:38,007 --> 00:19:44,278
series of 13 bak'tun cycles,
totaling 5,125 years.

285
00:19:44,313 --> 00:19:51,185
According to scholars, the dates
stretch from August 11, 3114 BC

286
00:19:51,220 --> 00:19:54,321
to December 21, 2012.

287
00:19:54,357 --> 00:19:59,328
And there, inexplicably, it stops.

288
00:20:01,564 --> 00:20:06,533
Why were the Maya tracking
celestial events in cycles of

289
00:20:06,569 --> 00:20:08,802
over thousands of years?

290
00:20:08,838 --> 00:20:13,574
Was it simply, as some scholars
suggest, because they could?

291
00:20:13,709 --> 00:20:18,545
Or did they, as ancient
astronaut theorists believe,

292
00:20:18,581 --> 00:20:22,883
create the calendar as a way of
marking time until the return of

293
00:20:22,919 --> 00:20:24,453
otherworldly visitors,

294
00:20:25,488 --> 00:20:29,455
beings that were believed
by them to be gods?

295
00:20:30,092 --> 00:20:33,027
COPPENS: Some calendar systems
from the Mayans, today,

296
00:20:33,095 --> 00:20:36,864
science has no idea about what
they are based on, but we just

297
00:20:36,899 --> 00:20:40,200
know that they exist
for a specific reason.

298
00:20:40,269 --> 00:20:43,704
So it is clear that they were
given to them by an intelligence

299
00:20:43,773 --> 00:20:46,674
who knew what these calendar
rounds represented.

300
00:20:47,109 --> 00:20:54,048
And so, what we are seeing is
that the Mayans are working with

301
00:20:54,083 --> 00:20:58,385
tools, technology, calendar
systems, which were specifically

302
00:20:58,454 --> 00:21:01,388
engineered because they had
been told that when certain

303
00:21:01,457 --> 00:21:03,891
things in the skies looked a
certain way, then the gods

304
00:21:03,960 --> 00:21:05,560
would return.

305
00:21:05,962 --> 00:21:09,596
GEORGE NOORY: The Mayans were
incredible at what they did.

306
00:21:09,632 --> 00:21:12,499
The big question is: how
did they know this?

307
00:21:12,635 --> 00:21:16,704
You have to say to yourself,
perhaps civilizations might be

308
00:21:16,739 --> 00:21:20,941
much older than we think and
they passed down knowledge

309
00:21:20,977 --> 00:21:25,913
for hundreds and hundreds of
thousands of years, or somebody

310
00:21:25,982 --> 00:21:28,849
came down and taught them.

311
00:21:32,454 --> 00:21:36,457
NARRATOR: Did the Maya create
the Long Count Calendar to warn

312
00:21:36,492 --> 00:21:38,627
us of a deadly cataclysm?

313
00:21:39,762 --> 00:21:44,631
Or were they simply intending to
inform us of the day which will

314
00:21:44,667 --> 00:21:47,101
signal the return of their gods?

315
00:21:47,436 --> 00:21:51,604
But who... or what...
were these gods?

316
00:21:52,341 --> 00:21:54,141
And what is their agenda?

317
00:21:54,510 --> 00:21:59,079
According to ancient astronaut
theorists, the answer can be

318
00:21:59,115 --> 00:22:01,349
found in the stars.

319
00:22:07,182 --> 00:22:08,717
NARRATOR: Tikal.

320
00:22:09,752 --> 00:22:12,220
Northern Guatemala.

321
00:22:13,056 --> 00:22:16,891
Located within the dense
tropical jungles of Central

322
00:22:16,926 --> 00:22:21,662
America, this archaeological
site was once one of the great

323
00:22:21,698 --> 00:22:24,433
urban centers of the
Mayan civilization.

324
00:22:25,368 --> 00:22:31,505
Here, along the Grand Plaza, the
Maya built seven pyramid-shaped

325
00:22:31,541 --> 00:22:35,410
temples aligned to mimic the
constellation Pleiades.

326
00:22:36,112 --> 00:22:39,747
HAWKES: They called it the
Seven Sisters because it

327
00:22:39,782 --> 00:22:41,917
consisted of seven bright stars.

328
00:22:42,619 --> 00:22:46,554
They also believed that the
Pleiades was at the center of

329
00:22:46,623 --> 00:22:51,058
all fixed stars, so when they
looked at the Pleiades, they

330
00:22:51,094 --> 00:22:54,996
believed that that may have been
the center of all creation, and

331
00:22:55,031 --> 00:22:57,865
they believed that they came
from the center of that

332
00:22:57,900 --> 00:23:01,970
creation, or, simply put,
they came from Pleiades.

333
00:23:02,505 --> 00:23:05,339
CHILDRESS: Why would the
Mayans go through such a

334
00:23:05,408 --> 00:23:11,245
tremendous effort to recreate a mirror
image of the stars on the ground?

335
00:23:11,247 --> 00:23:15,182
Why would they do that unless
they wanted to contact the

336
00:23:15,251 --> 00:23:19,654
extraterrestrial gods who had
originally given them the information?

337
00:23:20,256 --> 00:23:22,924
HAWKES: Pleiades was not
only important to the Maya;

338
00:23:22,959 --> 00:23:25,860
It was also important
to Native Americans.

339
00:23:26,429 --> 00:23:29,363
The Cherokee, for example,
the Hopi, believe that they

340
00:23:29,399 --> 00:23:33,402
descended from star beings that came
from the Pleiades star cluster.

341
00:23:34,937 --> 00:23:39,240
NARRATOR: According to
scholars, the Maya believed

342
00:23:39,275 --> 00:23:43,044
that powerful gods descended to
Earth from the stars, including

343
00:23:43,112 --> 00:23:46,581
a feathered serpent
known as Kukulkan.

344
00:23:47,116 --> 00:23:50,918
CHILDRESS: According to Mayan
legend, Kukulkan was the winged

345
00:23:50,953 --> 00:23:54,222
serpent, some serpent
god who could fly.

346
00:23:54,557 --> 00:23:58,025
COPPENS: Kukulkan, by the Maya,
is depicted in a number of ways.

347
00:23:58,294 --> 00:23:59,527
Sometimes he is human.

348
00:23:59,562 --> 00:24:01,028
Sometimes he is a serpent.

349
00:24:01,064 --> 00:24:05,599
Sometimes we see him emanating
from a serpent's head.

350
00:24:05,601 --> 00:24:09,704
We know that there is no way
that a human being can emerge

351
00:24:09,739 --> 00:24:13,040
from a physical serpent, so the
serpent must stand for something

352
00:24:13,076 --> 00:24:15,810
else... either a
construction or a device.

353
00:24:16,412 --> 00:24:20,581
Now, because we know Kukulkan is
a deity, we also definitely need

354
00:24:20,616 --> 00:24:25,219
to consider that this device
is somehow a ship and Kukulkan

355
00:24:25,288 --> 00:24:29,090
emerges from within the confines
of the ship to the outside world

356
00:24:29,125 --> 00:24:32,194
and reveals himself as
a deity to the people.

357
00:24:35,430 --> 00:24:39,400
HAWKES: Kukulkan was the
creator of all life who led the

358
00:24:39,469 --> 00:24:44,438
Maya into an age of scientific
advancement, and advancement

359
00:24:44,474 --> 00:24:46,073
of art and architecture.

360
00:24:46,109 --> 00:24:49,777
According to ancient Maya
mythology, Kukulkan left the

361
00:24:49,812 --> 00:24:54,448
people and said he would return
one day, and many scholars

362
00:24:54,484 --> 00:24:57,752
believe that the ending of the
Maya calendar, on December 21

363
00:24:57,820 --> 00:25:02,623
this year, will mark the
return of Kukulkan.

364
00:25:10,132 --> 00:25:14,735
NARRATOR: 400 miles north of
Tikal, in the ancient Maya city

365
00:25:14,771 --> 00:25:19,974
of Chichen Itza, stands a
uniquely designed pyramid, built

366
00:25:20,009 --> 00:25:23,110
by the Maya to honor Kukulkan.

367
00:25:23,112 --> 00:25:27,281
TSOUKALOS: Unlike most of the
pyramids all around the world,

368
00:25:27,350 --> 00:25:31,585
the platform pyramid we can find
at Chichen Itza is not directed

369
00:25:31,621 --> 00:25:33,621
in a north-south or east-west

370
00:25:33,689 --> 00:25:36,089
direction, but it's a little bit off.

371
00:25:37,026 --> 00:25:40,761
There is a specific reason for
that, and that is, during the

372
00:25:40,797 --> 00:25:45,266
spring and fall equinox, a
shadow play is cast upon the

373
00:25:45,301 --> 00:25:51,272
side of the pyramid signifying
the descent of Kukulkan, the

374
00:25:51,307 --> 00:25:57,111
extraterrestrial descending from
the sky, staying a while on

375
00:25:57,180 --> 00:26:01,415
Earth, and then ascending
towards the heavens.

376
00:26:01,450 --> 00:26:07,121
What we have here is an
example of living mythology.

377
00:26:10,025 --> 00:26:14,161
So my question is: what did
they mean when they talked

378
00:26:14,197 --> 00:26:17,932
about this deity that
descended from the sky?

379
00:26:18,167 --> 00:26:23,304
NARRATOR: Why was it so
important to the Maya to build

380
00:26:23,372 --> 00:26:26,541
such an elaborate temple
to honor Kukulkan?

381
00:26:27,677 --> 00:26:30,644
Did they really expect this
serpent god to ascend to the

382
00:26:30,713 --> 00:26:34,580
heavens and then
descend to Earth?

383
00:26:35,151 --> 00:26:39,420
Or could Kukulkan be something
even more incredible?

384
00:26:39,856 --> 00:26:42,557
Something not of this world?

385
00:26:43,693 --> 00:26:46,493
TSOUKALOS: If you look up in
the air today, and you watch

386
00:26:46,562 --> 00:26:50,297
a plane, it leaves behind this
plume of smoke as it travels

387
00:26:50,333 --> 00:26:56,704
across the sky and you've got the
snake's tail wiggling at its backside.

388
00:26:56,739 --> 00:26:59,840
So if you look at it from
that perspective, that can be

389
00:26:59,876 --> 00:27:03,210
described as a flying snake.

390
00:27:03,246 --> 00:27:06,881
And in my opinion, that was
nothing else but a description

391
00:27:06,916 --> 00:27:10,050
of some type of an
extraterrestrial craft that

392
00:27:10,086 --> 00:27:14,855
descended from the sky out of
which the gods, lower case "g,"

393
00:27:14,891 --> 00:27:18,392
emerged and taught them
in various disciplines.

394
00:27:18,694 --> 00:27:20,660
VON DANIKEN:
The message is clear.

395
00:27:21,197 --> 00:27:24,198
God Kukulkan descended
to the humans.

396
00:27:24,533 --> 00:27:27,301
He was a certain time
among the humans.

397
00:27:27,770 --> 00:27:31,872
He was the teacher of the humans
and then he disappeared again,

398
00:27:31,908 --> 00:27:36,012
but with the promise to
return one day to the humans.

399
00:27:38,114 --> 00:27:41,415
NARRATOR: Is it really
possible, as some ancient

400
00:27:41,450 --> 00:27:45,886
astronaut theorists suggest,
that Kukulkan was, in fact,

401
00:27:45,922 --> 00:27:50,724
a flying spacecraft,
engineered and piloted by

402
00:27:50,760 --> 00:27:52,694
otherworldly visitors?

403
00:27:53,930 --> 00:27:57,865
And, if so, could this explain
the frequent depictions of this

404
00:27:57,900 --> 00:28:01,902
ancient Mayan god as having
a face appearing out of a

405
00:28:01,938 --> 00:28:07,106
serpent's head, similar to that
of a pilot operating a vehicle?

406
00:28:11,146 --> 00:28:14,581
According to researchers, clues
to the connection between the

407
00:28:14,650 --> 00:28:18,619
Maya and otherworldly beings
can also be found in the Mayan

408
00:28:18,654 --> 00:28:21,587
manuscript known as the Popul Vuh,

409
00:28:21,623 --> 00:28:23,989
meaning "The Book of the People."

410
00:28:24,527 --> 00:28:26,393
It is a collection of the only

411
00:28:26,429 --> 00:28:29,929
known Maya oral histories
still surviving.

412
00:28:30,433 --> 00:28:34,635
Translated and written in the
mid-16th century, this book

413
00:28:34,670 --> 00:28:39,606
encompasses a range of subjects,
including Mayan creation myths.

414
00:28:40,675 --> 00:28:43,143
ED BARNHART: The Popul
Vuh begins with nothing.

415
00:28:43,179 --> 00:28:45,679
There's nothing there.

416
00:28:45,681 --> 00:28:48,749
There's a watery surface,
but there's no sky.

417
00:28:48,784 --> 00:28:50,417
There's no land.

418
00:28:50,453 --> 00:28:52,952
The gods emerge out of this water.

419
00:28:56,658 --> 00:28:58,559
They begin with nothing.

420
00:28:58,828 --> 00:29:01,227
And the gods decide to make people.

421
00:29:01,664 --> 00:29:05,399
Coming right out of one of the
most seemingly inhospitable

422
00:29:05,434 --> 00:29:09,737
places for civilization to
sprout, comes this culture,

423
00:29:09,772 --> 00:29:13,474
the Maya, who create this
collection of independent

424
00:29:13,509 --> 00:29:16,610
city states and build pyramids.

425
00:29:16,679 --> 00:29:20,414
They develop a written language
and a mathematical system.

426
00:29:20,449 --> 00:29:24,451
They grow up into this forest
there, reaching populations into

427
00:29:24,520 --> 00:29:26,920
the multimillions.

428
00:29:28,189 --> 00:29:32,292
TSOUKALOS: In the Popol Vuh, it
clearly states that life was

429
00:29:32,361 --> 00:29:34,795
brought here by the gods and

430
00:29:34,830 --> 00:29:38,097
that those gods came
from outer space.

431
00:29:38,200 --> 00:29:41,635
It doesn't say that they
came from inner Earth.

432
00:29:41,704 --> 00:29:44,638
It also doesn't say that they
came from another continent or

433
00:29:44,707 --> 00:29:45,806
another land.

434
00:29:46,375 --> 00:29:50,644
But it states specifically that
they descended from the sky

435
00:29:50,679 --> 00:29:54,884
and essentially brought
knowledge to planet Earth.

436
00:29:57,319 --> 00:29:59,787
PHILIP COPPENS: What you have
in the Popol Vuh is very much

437
00:29:59,822 --> 00:30:00,788
like a manual.

438
00:30:01,057 --> 00:30:03,490
It is something that you want to
give to the people and say, this

439
00:30:03,559 --> 00:30:08,195
is what we, our ancestors, have
decided together with the gods,

440
00:30:08,230 --> 00:30:11,198
and this is really what you
should keep in mind for the next

441
00:30:11,233 --> 00:30:15,768
few centuries up until the moment
in time when the gods return.

442
00:30:18,007 --> 00:30:19,106
NARRATOR: Is it really possible...

443
00:30:19,141 --> 00:30:21,841
as ancient astronaut
theorists believe...

444
00:30:21,844 --> 00:30:26,747
that the Maya god Kukulkan was
an extraterrestrial entity?

445
00:30:26,916 --> 00:30:31,019
One that is destined to return
one day from the stars?

446
00:30:32,088 --> 00:30:36,356
And, if so, does it suggest that
there may be truth to another

447
00:30:36,425 --> 00:30:42,229
Mayan legend, one that predicts
that our time on Earth may be

448
00:30:42,264 --> 00:30:44,132
running out?

449
00:30:47,513 --> 00:30:49,580
NARRATOR:
Monument Number Six.

450
00:30:50,218 --> 00:30:54,320
On this stone tablet,
are carved a series of

451
00:30:54,389 --> 00:30:56,489
ancient Mayan hieroglyphs,

452
00:30:56,824 --> 00:31:00,760
that according to scholars
ominously predict a cataclysmic

453
00:31:00,828 --> 00:31:05,430
event on December 21, 2012.

454
00:31:05,532 --> 00:31:09,134
BARNHART: This is a long
monument that talks about the

455
00:31:09,170 --> 00:31:12,037
lifetime of a particular king.

456
00:31:12,039 --> 00:31:16,141
But at the end of it, it goes
forward into the future, takes

457
00:31:16,177 --> 00:31:22,448
this big leap from the
600s AD up to 2012.

458
00:31:22,483 --> 00:31:27,686
It definitely says Four Ahau,
Eight Konkin arriving the 13th

459
00:31:27,722 --> 00:31:30,155
bak'tun or 400-year period.

460
00:31:30,224 --> 00:31:33,692
But then there are only three
more glyphs and they are eroded

461
00:31:33,728 --> 00:31:35,494
and broken partially.

462
00:31:35,529 --> 00:31:38,497
NARRATOR: Some scholars believe
that the eroded glyphs

463
00:31:38,566 --> 00:31:43,502
on Monument Six suggest Bolon Yokte...
a god similar to

464
00:31:43,537 --> 00:31:48,807
Kukulkan... will return at the
end of the Mayan calendar.

465
00:31:50,011 --> 00:31:52,845
VON DANIKEN: The Mayan
specialists can read it

466
00:31:52,880 --> 00:31:58,448
"will descend from heaven
god Bolon Yokte."

467
00:32:00,520 --> 00:32:04,757
Bolon Yokte was one of the Maya
gods who was present with the

468
00:32:04,825 --> 00:32:06,525
creation of man.

469
00:32:06,594 --> 00:32:11,196
So they say, "Will descend,
god Bolon Yokte."

470
00:32:11,265 --> 00:32:15,901
So some gods, some extraterrestrials,
were expected to return.

471
00:32:15,937 --> 00:32:19,538
And definitely, some of
the gods will return.

472
00:32:19,573 --> 00:32:22,375
There is absolutely no doubt.

473
00:32:26,712 --> 00:32:28,848
TSOUKALOS: Who was
this Bolon Yokte?

474
00:32:28,849 --> 00:32:32,418
According to the documents that
have survived, and they're only

475
00:32:32,453 --> 00:32:37,556
fragmentary, he was always
described as someone with great

476
00:32:37,625 --> 00:32:41,794
powers, who had the capacity of
flight and who had incredible

477
00:32:41,862 --> 00:32:45,164
knowledge about the universe.

478
00:32:46,700 --> 00:32:51,702
BARNHART: The God Bolon Yokte is
not a very well understood god.

479
00:32:51,872 --> 00:32:55,107
Sometimes he's associated with
texts that talk about the

480
00:32:55,142 --> 00:33:00,245
beginning of creation
back in 3114 BC.

481
00:33:00,281 --> 00:33:02,047
And we see him in some context

482
00:33:02,083 --> 00:33:05,116
that seemed to be connected with war.

483
00:33:07,588 --> 00:33:11,090
TSOUKALOS: Bolon Yokte was
also described as being very

484
00:33:11,158 --> 00:33:14,660
tall and very shiny, glowing.

485
00:33:15,096 --> 00:33:20,599
Is it possible that what we have here
is a description of an ancient alien?

486
00:33:20,634 --> 00:33:23,136
And the answer is yes.

487
00:33:24,171 --> 00:33:27,573
NARRATOR: But while there is
much mystery surrounding the

488
00:33:27,608 --> 00:33:31,577
legend of Bolon Yokte,
researchers say the ancient

489
00:33:31,612 --> 00:33:35,614
Maya believed this entity
had visited their ancestors

490
00:33:35,649 --> 00:33:39,619
before thousands of years in the past.

491
00:33:40,154 --> 00:33:42,855
TSOUKALOS: There is another
reference to Bolon Yokte

492
00:33:42,923 --> 00:33:47,593
at Palenque in Temple 14, where
it is clearly stated that

493
00:33:47,628 --> 00:33:53,332
Bolon Yokte appeared on Earth
over 900,000 years ago.

494
00:33:53,367 --> 00:33:57,870
Why would anyone in their right
mind record a date that goes

495
00:33:57,938 --> 00:34:01,274
back over 900,000 years ago?

496
00:34:02,043 --> 00:34:04,276
Well, something happened.

497
00:34:04,311 --> 00:34:06,879
Something very significant.

498
00:34:06,947 --> 00:34:10,516
And according to the ancient
texts, that is when Bolon Yokte

499
00:34:10,551 --> 00:34:14,653
descended to Earth from the sky.

500
00:34:19,192 --> 00:34:22,127
NARRATOR: Similar stories
suggesting that the Maya were,

501
00:34:22,163 --> 00:34:25,898
in some way, connected to
otherworldly beings can be

502
00:34:25,966 --> 00:34:31,070
found in an ancient Maya text
known as the Chilam Balam...

503
00:34:31,138 --> 00:34:35,508
a collection of oral histories
passed down through the ages.

504
00:34:36,377 --> 00:34:38,877
VON DANIKEN: The Chilam Balam
books were written between

505
00:34:38,946 --> 00:34:41,146
the 16th and the 18th centuries,

506
00:34:42,615 --> 00:34:45,485
when the Spanish conquerors
were already there.

507
00:34:45,486 --> 00:34:47,553
First, the Spanish arrived.

508
00:34:47,554 --> 00:34:49,820
They found hundreds of Maya writings.

509
00:34:49,857 --> 00:34:51,456
They destroyed them all.

510
00:34:51,525 --> 00:34:54,493
But then some of the priests
escaped and they start to write

511
00:34:54,528 --> 00:34:56,595
up their old knowledge.

512
00:34:56,630 --> 00:35:01,834
That's the reason how the Chilam
Balam books came to existence.

513
00:35:03,870 --> 00:35:07,306
BARNHART: The name Chilam Balam
is actually the name for

514
00:35:07,374 --> 00:35:13,378
a priesthood who were kind of
the historians of communities

515
00:35:13,447 --> 00:35:16,548
in the Yucatan.

516
00:35:16,583 --> 00:35:21,184
But we have this collection of books
that we call the Chilam Balams.

517
00:35:21,254 --> 00:35:25,556
These are the books in which we
find this information about how

518
00:35:25,591 --> 00:35:29,693
the Maya believe that what's
happened before will happen again.

519
00:35:30,863 --> 00:35:34,966
In the opinion of the people
that write the Chilam Balams,

520
00:35:35,035 --> 00:35:36,834
they believe them to be very accurate.

521
00:35:37,370 --> 00:35:41,639
The Chilam Balam talks about
these 20-year periods.

522
00:35:41,674 --> 00:35:42,808
"In this 20-year period, you"

523
00:35:42,843 --> 00:35:45,277
could see it was a bad time for us.

524
00:35:45,312 --> 00:35:47,946
We can expect negative
things "to befall us."

525
00:35:47,981 --> 00:35:51,316
And of course, one of the most
negative and bad-luck times they

526
00:35:51,385 --> 00:35:54,219
have is the arrival of the Spanish.

527
00:35:54,388 --> 00:35:56,188
And they point to that as, "See?

528
00:35:56,223 --> 00:35:59,658
Clearly in the cycles of time,
we could almost predict that

529
00:35:59,726 --> 00:36:03,596
this calamity was bound to
"happen to us at this time."

530
00:36:06,799 --> 00:36:11,203
NARRATOR: In the Chilam Bilam
it states that the god Bolon

531
00:36:11,238 --> 00:36:15,340
Yokte will someday return and
battle the deities of heaven in

532
00:36:15,375 --> 00:36:18,944
an epic war of good versus evil.

533
00:36:19,246 --> 00:36:22,681
COPPENS: Each age for the
Mayans was clearly defined, and

534
00:36:22,749 --> 00:36:25,750
it was defined by the gods returning.

535
00:36:25,819 --> 00:36:30,322
And so what we have today, or in
the near future, is the imminent

536
00:36:30,357 --> 00:36:34,026
arrival according to the Mayan
tradition of these deities.

537
00:36:34,027 --> 00:36:37,329
NARRATOR: This prediction of
a final apocalyptic battle

538
00:36:37,364 --> 00:36:41,333
between good and evil as
described in the Chilam Bilam,

539
00:36:41,368 --> 00:36:46,337
can also be found in the Christian
Bible's book of Revelation.

540
00:36:46,906 --> 00:36:50,041
MORTON: It is interesting
that if you look at the last

541
00:36:50,076 --> 00:36:52,744
book of the Bible, it talks
about some great war in heaven

542
00:36:52,779 --> 00:36:54,812
between the Archangel Michael
and the great dragon.

543
00:36:54,848 --> 00:36:59,450
Is there some last great war
in heaven that occurs at

544
00:36:59,519 --> 00:37:00,719
this final age?

545
00:37:01,454 --> 00:37:04,255
NARRATOR: If the Maya
prophecy about the return of

546
00:37:04,291 --> 00:37:08,426
Bolon Yokte is true, might there
really be a so-called battle

547
00:37:08,461 --> 00:37:10,695
between good and evil?

548
00:37:10,764 --> 00:37:15,033
One that will result in the
annihilation of all mankind?

549
00:37:15,968 --> 00:37:18,303
But how?

550
00:37:23,598 --> 00:37:25,332
NARRATOR: Planet Earth.

551
00:37:25,368 --> 00:37:30,004
Although there are many theories
about its age and origin, one

552
00:37:30,039 --> 00:37:36,544
fact is certain: our planet
is billions of years old.

553
00:37:36,612 --> 00:37:41,882
And mankind's existence on its
surface is relatively recent...

554
00:37:41,918 --> 00:37:44,118
and fragile.

555
00:37:44,554 --> 00:37:48,589
Throughout history, the
biggest threat to mankind has

556
00:37:48,624 --> 00:37:53,060
come in the form of natural disasters.

557
00:37:53,095 --> 00:37:59,300
But does that mean the world
will end on December 21, 2012?

558
00:37:59,669 --> 00:38:03,103
Recent evidence has shown that
the ancient Mayans possessed

559
00:38:03,172 --> 00:38:07,575
knowledge about the universe
and its fate that we are only

560
00:38:07,610 --> 00:38:09,910
just beginning to understand.

561
00:38:13,148 --> 00:38:15,516
CHILDRESS: According to the
Mayans, the world has already

562
00:38:15,585 --> 00:38:20,354
ended four times before
this coming cataclysm.

563
00:38:20,423 --> 00:38:25,626
It ended before in, in fire
and in ice and in water.

564
00:38:27,529 --> 00:38:32,766
This next cataclysm could be
a combination of all that or

565
00:38:32,802 --> 00:38:35,835
even something
completely different.

566
00:38:38,639 --> 00:38:41,241
MORTON: Not only did the
Mayans know our place in the

567
00:38:41,310 --> 00:38:44,211
universe, but they also knew
how old the universe was.

568
00:38:44,246 --> 00:38:48,748
The Mayans put the date of the
universe at 16.4 billion years.

569
00:38:48,817 --> 00:38:52,886
Modern science today puts it at
about 14 and a half, maybe 15.

570
00:38:52,888 --> 00:38:55,222
And yet the better our
technology gets the more we

571
00:38:55,257 --> 00:38:57,493
begin to realize that the
Mayans were correct.

572
00:39:00,162 --> 00:39:03,396
NARRATOR: Is it possible then,
as the Mayans predicted,

573
00:39:03,465 --> 00:39:06,733
that the Earth and sun will
align with a black hole on

574
00:39:06,802 --> 00:39:10,537
December 21, 2012?

575
00:39:10,572 --> 00:39:15,041
And if so, will such a cosmic event
have dire consequences

576
00:39:15,077 --> 00:39:17,411
for our world?

577
00:39:17,880 --> 00:39:22,450
MORTON: The Tibetans believe
that the sun is a lens...

578
00:39:24,086 --> 00:39:27,988
that it activates and amplifies
things behind it or things

579
00:39:28,056 --> 00:39:29,155
coming in front of it.

580
00:39:29,224 --> 00:39:33,093
If that's the case, on December
21, you have an energy that's

581
00:39:33,161 --> 00:39:36,096
coming from the center of
the galaxy that comes from

582
00:39:36,164 --> 00:39:38,999
the dark rift that comes
comes from the womb of the

583
00:39:39,067 --> 00:39:42,769
galaxy, if you will, that is now
gonna be amplified by the sun,

584
00:39:42,804 --> 00:39:47,007
that is going to have some
kind of effect on humanity.

585
00:39:49,677 --> 00:39:52,646
NOORY: I think the Mayans
had an understanding of

586
00:39:52,681 --> 00:39:54,414
celestial mechanics.

587
00:39:54,449 --> 00:39:58,618
They understood that the sun
was going through change.

588
00:39:58,620 --> 00:40:04,792
And so my belief is that something
will happen with the sun.

589
00:40:05,627 --> 00:40:07,761
HAWKES: Well, we know from
past experience that solar

590
00:40:07,796 --> 00:40:10,230
flares can interfere with
electronic equipment.

591
00:40:10,465 --> 00:40:13,433
We could see the power
grid go down, for example.

592
00:40:13,468 --> 00:40:17,304
We could see major things
change in modern society that

593
00:40:17,306 --> 00:40:19,039
pretty much would cripple us.

594
00:40:19,107 --> 00:40:22,275
But if we're talking about
losing that ability for an

595
00:40:22,311 --> 00:40:25,378
extended period of time, I
daresay we'd be talking about a

596
00:40:25,447 --> 00:40:28,481
scenario that would result
in major changes, and quite

597
00:40:28,550 --> 00:40:31,051
possibly some very ill effects.

598
00:40:34,488 --> 00:40:36,790
NARRATOR: Some researchers
speculate that the galactic

599
00:40:36,825 --> 00:40:41,027
alignment might change or even
reverse how the Earth spins on

600
00:40:41,063 --> 00:40:45,432
its axis by altering
its magnetic field.

601
00:40:45,467 --> 00:40:48,435
MICHAEL DENNIN: A sign of the
magnetic field changing quickly

602
00:40:48,470 --> 00:40:51,538
would mean something has to
happen dramatically to the

603
00:40:51,607 --> 00:40:54,474
angular momentum of the stuff
inside the Earth, which might

604
00:40:54,543 --> 00:40:57,611
also mean something happens
drastically to the spin of the

605
00:40:57,646 --> 00:40:59,012
Earth itself.

606
00:40:59,047 --> 00:41:02,616
And once you change the rotation
of the Earth, you do have a

607
00:41:02,651 --> 00:41:04,852
chance of causing huge effects.

608
00:41:05,554 --> 00:41:07,020
It's like having a whole bunch

609
00:41:07,055 --> 00:41:08,955
of massive earthquakes at the same time.

610
00:41:09,825 --> 00:41:12,792
HAWKES: We talk about a
magnitude seven or a magnitude

611
00:41:12,828 --> 00:41:15,328
eight or a magnitude nine
earthquake as being destructive

612
00:41:15,397 --> 00:41:17,464
beyond imagination.

613
00:41:17,499 --> 00:41:22,135
But what would a magnitude 12 or
a magnitude 20 earthquake do?

614
00:41:22,170 --> 00:41:27,807
Could it replace the land with the
sea and the sea with the land?

615
00:41:27,843 --> 00:41:30,910
We're talking about events that
we've never experienced before.

616
00:41:30,979 --> 00:41:34,514
So some of these changes that
people are talking about that

617
00:41:34,583 --> 00:41:38,151
could occur could be life
changing or they could be

618
00:41:38,186 --> 00:41:40,186
life-ending.

619
00:41:44,492 --> 00:41:46,826
NARRATOR: Will the Earth
really be affected by some

620
00:41:46,862 --> 00:41:50,630
strange, powerful
astronomical alignment?

621
00:41:50,999 --> 00:41:55,201
One that will have profound
consequences for all of us?

622
00:41:55,270 --> 00:42:00,073
And if so, might those
consequences come in the form of

623
00:42:00,108 --> 00:42:03,076
death and destruction?

624
00:42:03,111 --> 00:42:07,781
Or might there be another,
perhaps more positive outcome?

625
00:42:10,117 --> 00:42:13,853
CHILDRESS: The end of the Mayan
Long Count could mean some

626
00:42:13,889 --> 00:42:15,689
doomsday for planet Earth.

627
00:42:15,724 --> 00:42:18,892
Or on the other hand, perhaps
it is the return of the

628
00:42:18,960 --> 00:42:22,262
extraterrestrial gods
as the Mayans believed.

629
00:42:22,631 --> 00:42:27,634
It's hard to know the future,
what's gonna happen at

630
00:42:27,703 --> 00:42:29,202
the end of 2012.

631
00:42:29,237 --> 00:42:33,206
But it seems that perhaps the
Mayans had some glimpse into the

632
00:42:33,241 --> 00:42:36,543
future that we have yet to find out.

633
00:42:40,314 --> 00:42:43,817
COPPENS: We are living in a
time, specifically a culture,

634
00:42:43,885 --> 00:42:47,287
which really doesn't address the
ancient alien theory that we

635
00:42:47,322 --> 00:42:48,388
are not alone.

636
00:42:48,423 --> 00:42:51,491
It is indeed gonna come for a
global village as a complete

637
00:42:51,560 --> 00:42:53,993
revelation that we are not alone.

638
00:42:54,062 --> 00:42:57,163
And that is really, I think, a
gift from the Mayans when it

639
00:42:57,232 --> 00:42:59,100
comes to 2012.

640
00:43:00,335 --> 00:43:03,169
TSOUKALOS: It is absolutely
correct that a calendar round

641
00:43:03,238 --> 00:43:09,340
is about to end, but that does not
signify the end of the world.

642
00:43:09,444 --> 00:43:13,012
In fact, the only thing it
signifies is the beginning of

643
00:43:13,081 --> 00:43:19,686
another calendar round of
another period in time.

644
00:43:22,456 --> 00:43:27,427
NARRATOR: Could the Mayan doomsday
prophesies really come true?

645
00:43:27,462 --> 00:43:32,932
Will December 21, 2012 signal
the end of civilization

646
00:43:32,968 --> 00:43:34,301
as we know it?

647
00:43:35,370 --> 00:43:39,272
Or are the dire predictions
nothing more than a myth?

648
00:43:39,307 --> 00:43:43,778
A misinterpretation of
an even greater truth?

649
00:43:45,313 --> 00:43:48,815
Perhaps what awaits us is
not the end of our world,

650
00:43:48,884 --> 00:43:51,450
but a new beginning.

651
00:43:51,451 --> 00:43:56,550
One that will reveal the
celestial origins of man.

652
00:43:56,551 --> 00:43:58,451
Sync and corrections by bellows
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