Customer Reviews:
GOOD BUT COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER.......2006-02-09
THIS BOOK IS FASCINATING, HOWEVER IF YOU DON'T LIKE SCIENTIFIC READING IT MAY BE HARD TO FOLLOW. OTHERWISE ITS A GREAT READ IF ARE INTERESTED IN ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS AND EARTH'S MYSTERIES.
Dissapointed with ending.......2005-11-02
I found the conclusion of the book to be inconclusive and feel that it is not based on any hard science; its the author's opinion supported by sketchy facts, figures and theories from other sources. It's artful and entertaining, but it's not like its going to leave you with the truth of 2012 being the end of the world.
I don't regret reading it, however, and would recommend it to someone who is interested in learning about the subject. It just gives you one more opinion to chew on and ponder. And, I like pondering things.
Futhermore, there is some historical information on the Central American Civilizations of the past, the Mayan calendars, as well as some interesting theories on Sunspot's.
Dodgy..........2005-06-21
The blurb on the back reads "The present world will end on 22 December 2012. So prophesied the Maya 5,000 years ago..." - yet on page 4 the authors indicate that the Maya appeared around 500AD, which by my reckoning is only 1,500 years ago.
Such internal inconsistencies riddle this book, and make it unreliable. On the face of it - and ignoring the 2012 prophecy, which uses some pretty tortuous mathematical manipulations - there is a lot of interesting information here about the Maya, but I'm afraid I just don't know how much I can believe or trust.
I'm sure many people will lap up this book, and simply assume that the "facts" on the Maya must be true because they are written in an authoritative manner, but please keep an open mind - which includes remembering that the authors may be wrong.
Very dissappointing.......2004-09-09
It was implied that the earth's magnetic field reversed 3K years BC. This caused Atlantis to sink and new lands to appear. This scenario would make sense. What doesnt make sense is that according to a geographic magazine (scientific fact), the last time the earth's magnetic field reversed was 780,000 years ago. Moreover, its occurrence is random and not in some sequence deciphered by the Mayan calendar. Assuming the Mayan calendar was true, then what would happen in 2012? The facts are that the sunspots activity align with the Mayan calculations. In a period of years before and after 2012, there will be instances of very few or no sunspots occuring. This will effect fertility and weather patterns but mostly in the equator area. Hence, Mexico, India, Southeast Asia, Africa will be affected. The only reason the rest of the world will be affected is due to the side effect of us polluting the world with CO2 from too much cars and waste dumping, thereby melting the polar ice caps. The sunspot event before and after 2012 will just make things worse. So the doomsayers would come out and point to the Mayan prophecy as applicable to the whole world. As you can see if we did not pollute, North America would not be affected.
I give this book 1-star for the first chapter and explanation of the Mayan number system. I dont agree with the chapter about how images came up when Pacal's tomb cover were superimposed. The fact is that one can superimpose any drawing or try even Michaelangelo's fresco's. By careful delineation, one would come up with weird forms as what the author found in Pacal's about a jaguar? a bat?
Nonsense.......2003-07-09
This book is about coincidences. The authors notice a similarity between certain large numbers in the Maya calendar cycle and their own astrological theories about sunspot cycles. The numbers don't match, but from this "coincidence" the authors conclude that the Maya warned of a cosmic disaster for the year 2012.
The book could have stopped there, but instead it digresses into a sort of personal log of the authors' visits to Mexico, then revisits old material on transatlantic contact, Atlantis mythology, Edgar Cayce, Velikovsky, and other nonsense. Some of the historical material about Mexico is interesting and well written, but is clearly taken from other sources.
Some of the claims are bizarre, such as that the crystal "skull of doom" was used as a magnifying glass in a fire ceremony. Or that the "loops" on the Palenque sarcophagus represent magnetic field lines on the sun, something the Maya couldn't possibly have known about.
The authors' contempt for those with other points of view is annoying. The book that derides Von Daniken, astrologists, and professional archaeologists all at the same time.
The sloppiness about numbers is also annoying, especially since their entire case rests on numbers. The authors cite a "remarkable correlation" between the dates given for the great flood by Plato (9500 B.C), Cayce (10,500 B.C.), and the Maya (11,205 B.C.) These dates differ by over 1700 years, a variation of 15% relative to the present day. Considering that one of the authors claims to be an engineer and a scientist, this is inexcusable.
The Maya civilization is a fascinating and impressive one, and no doubt there is much wisdom we have yet to learn from them. You won't find it in this book.
Book Description
Explores the central role played by the galaxy in both ancient and modern times in the transformation of the human spirit.
• Extends Jenkins' groundbreaking research in Maya Cosmogenesis 2012.
• Reveals how the coming Galactic Alignment of era-2012 promises a renewal of human consciousness.
• Uncovers the galactic vision of Mayan, Egyptian, Greek, and Vedic cosmologies.
The Galactic Alignment is a rare astronomical event that brings the solstice sun into alignment with the center of the Milky Way galaxy every 12,960 years. Building on the discoveries of his book Maya Cosmogenesis 2012, Jenkins demonstrates that the end-date of 2012 does not signal the end of time but rather the beginning of a new stage in the development of human consciousness. He recovers a striking common thread that connects the ancient cosmological insights of the Maya not only to Egyptian thought and Vedic philosophy but also to the diversity of humankind's metaphysical traditions ranging from Celtic sacred topography and Medieval alchemy to the Kabbalah and Islamic astrology. His work presents us with a groundbreaking synthesis of lost wisdom once common to ancient cosmologies that will help us understand the significance of this transformative cosmic milestone.
Customer Reviews:
An acedemic inquiry.......2007-07-03
Clearly John Jenkins is extremely knowledgeable on his subject. The depth of detail in this book is quite amazing and is written concisely.
For me however, I found the detail a little too much. I couldn't help but think this kind of academic, intellectual inquiry was some attempt to justify the validity of the Mayan Calendar. It seems a distinct possibility to me that one could get lost in the detail of all this and miss the very essence of the Mayan Calendar. The point, in my mind at least, it is to turn inside to the intuitive Self, which is arising so obviously in these turbulent yet exciting years.
I can understand how an academic person would enjoy the deep analysis and mass of information, but a more "heart" directed person may find it all a bit heavy and drawn out.
I suppose the one thing I would simply suggest is that if you are a "heart" type of person, as I am, then maybe this isn't the book for you. As a matter of interest, I found Carl Calleman's books easier and more direct.
And in case you're wondering, I find the whole 2011 versus 2012 debate a little moot. That will show up soon enough. It isn't now. Be here now, in touch with your SELF. Practice that vigilantly, and the rest will follow perfectly naturally. Just like it's supposed to.
Another good book - 2012.......2007-03-09
For several years i was looking forward to get book such as this one. JMJ did as usuall great work. I like his style of writing. Filtered facts, returning to previous ideas, corection of the not well developed. Reviews of all passed parts. Great appendixies.
In fact JMJ guide us in 2012MAYA cosmogenesis to understand the meaning and purpose of the 2012. In this book JMJ shows us how the alignment is binded to Mayas time and to Ours. Where, When and What. So you can take some software and check your self if he tells us truth. Also if you take some other books related to this issue, you will be suprised by relationships between the facts. PopolVuh + this book + 2012 Maya Cosmogenesis + Orion Mystery + Hamlet Hill are really good combo to get quick overview about the 2012 issue.
I am not going to write and opose to the facts in the book, this review is just to guide other to buy or not to buy this book. So facts could be checked by orderer.
-keep it readin'-
DiaGnosis: Thought provoking to say the least!.......2007-02-18
Anyone who has read Hamlet's Mill, knows that knowledge of the precession of the equinoxes goes back into the mists of time, and has been encoded into mythology worldwide. Jenkins shows that, more than this, the ancients knew that there are certain times during the cycle of precession, when the earth-sun-galaxy relationship allows the influx of some kind of energy that triggers a transformational leap in mankind. There are 2 crossing points of the Galactic meridian, (centre-line of the Milky Way), and the ecliptic (path of sun and planets across the sky), or equally, the zodiac which lies behind the ecliptic. These crossing-points were known as "Gates" by the ancients. These celestial gates were described by Macrobius as the gates of Capricorn and Cancer, and were seen as doorways through which the soul descends to be reborn on earth and ascends following physical death.
In Joscelyn Godwin's book, Mystery Religions, the gate of reincarnation is called the Silver Gate, while the gate of ascension is called the Golden Gate, but he says that the Silver Gate is the way of reincarnation, while the Golden Gate is the Way of the Gods and leads "beyond the circle of Necessity, ie to release from the round of birth and death. These are the two routes from which the soul can exit from the world at death, and the Capricorn gate is the one through which the gods descend to earth."
It is clear from both Hamlet's Mill and from Jenkins' Galactic Alignment, that these gates don't actually lie in Cancer and Capricorn, but the neighbouring constellations of Gemini and Sagittarius. The Golden Gate lies at Galactic Center in Sagittarius, and the Silver Gate lies at Galactic Anti-Center in Gemini (see items 47 and 48). Following the work of Oliver Reiser, Jenkins makes a convincing case that the alignment of the Solstice Sun with the Galactic meridian, (close to Galactic center) which is flagged by the end of the 13-Baktun Cycle in 2012, marks the time-window when the divine influences descend;
"Precession changes our angular orientation to the larger magnetic field of the galaxy in which we are embedded. during regularly occurring eras in the precessional cycle, as indicated by the solstice-galaxy alignments (probably the equinox-galaxy alignments, too), the earth's protective magnetic shield becomes unstable and oscillates. Without a complete field reversal being required, this oscillation allows greater amounts of mutational rays to strike the surface of the earth. While this may result in mutations and a greater chance for "evolution", of greater significance is the possible transformative effect on human consciousness during alignment eras, when human beings are exposed to higher doses of high-frequency radiation."
Jenkins refers to Swami Sri Yukteswar's study of the Vedic Yuga system, (that may have originated as long ago as 7000 BC), and shows how that system is also flagging the galactic alignment. He concludes that there is a Galactic Chakra system, with the base chakra at Galactic Center, and the crown chakra in the direction of the Galactic Anti-center. Earth is at the level of the fifth (throat) chakra, evolving towards the sixth (ajna or third eye):
"The as yet unspoken message in this survey is that the galactic alignment opens a channel for the kundalini shakti to flow through the earth, cleanse (it) us, and excite it (us) into a higher level of being."
Like Hamlet's Mill, Galactic Alignment will probably inspire other researchers to dig further into the shadows illuminated by the book. This book has started connecting up many of the threads mentioned on the diagnosis2012 site, and has brought into sharp focus, the "underground stream" of knowledge encoded into virtually every religion you can think of...
They were all preparing us for the opening of the Golden Gate!
Very Interesting.......2007-01-16
So far, so good. I haven't finished it, but it encompasses a lot of what I have been researching over the last years... bottom line, let's see what happens in Dec. 21 2012...
Very misleading title. Reads like a boring technical manual.......2006-11-05
This book is analagous to buying a new elliptical, anxiously opening the user manual to find out how this new piece of equipment is going to benefit you, only to find page after page outlining the technical details of the inner workings of the machine with the last sentence or so briefly mentioning the effects the machine can have on your life. The author is obviously an expert on the subject of astronomy and how it relates to ancient historical monuments, but he is so caught up in the technical details that "the transformation of our consciousness" is brushed aside as an afterthought. Instead, the author drones on and on and on about monuments, angles, precessions, measurements etc. It's obviously necessary to briefly cover the technical aspects to build a foundation for the more exciting stuff to come, but this book never builds on that foundation. There were brief moments when I thought the book started to get really interesting, but the author would quickly revert back to the same old empirical, newtonian shallowness with more chapters that should have been titled, "who gives a [...]." John Major Jenkins is not really interested in the metaphysical side of this subject, and if you don't believe me, I quote page 239 of this book..."as a reminder, my work is not really to identify a mechanism that could empirically explain why a solstice-galaxy alignment might have transformative effects for life on Earth." My question is then why mention the transformation of consciousness in the title when it's hardly mentioned in the book? You would think that the benfits and effects of the sun aligning with the galactic center is going to have on our consciousness would be the main focus, since after all, it's what most of us should be most concerned with. If you are preparing for a test in astronomy, this book is for you. 2 stars for the misleading title.
Book Description
Here's an exciting, hands-on collection of ideas and activities designed to introduce students to the life of the ancient Mayans and Aztecs.
Ancient history will come to life for students as they write number glyphs using the code of the Maya, design their own battle uniforms using ideas from the Aztecs and learn about the diet, work, entertainment, worship and warfare of these people who were the forerunners of modern Mexico. They'll discover the fierce side of both cultures and their preoccupation with blood and death.
Students will begin to understand why the Mayans and Aztecs lived as they did and how a European desire to discover gold in the new world brought an end to their vibrant civilizations. A variety of creative activities are included to involve students in exploring these ancient peoples for themselves.
Book Description
For hundreds of years, Maya artists and scholars used hieroglyphs to record their history and culture. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, archaeologists, photographers, and artists recorded the Maya carvings that remained, often by transporting box cameras and plaster casts through the jungle on muleback. "The New Catalog of Maya Hieroglyphs, Volume I: The Classic Period Inscriptions" is a guide to all the known hieroglyphic symbols of the Classic Maya script. In the "New Catalog" Martha J. Macri and Matthew G. Looper have produced a valuable research tool based on the latest Mesoamerican scholarship.
An essential resource for all students of Maya texts, the "New Catalog" is also accessible to nonspecialists with an interest in Mesoamerican cultures. Macri and Looper present the combined knowledge of the most reliable scholars in Maya epigraphy. They provide currently accepted syllabic and logographic values, a history of references to published discussions of each sign, and related lexical entries from dictionaries of Maya languages, all of which were compiled through the Maya Hieroglyphic Database Project.
This first volume of the New Catalog focuses on texts from the Classic Period (approximately 150-900 C.E.), which have been found on carved stone monuments, stucco wall panels, wooden lintels, carved and painted pottery, murals, and small objects of jadeite, shell, bone, and wood. The forthcoming second volume will describe the hieroglyphs of the three surviving Maya codices that date from later periods.
Customer Reviews:
Want to learn to read Maya inscriptions? Start here........2005-10-16
Kudos to Macri and Looper! As a historical and comparative linguist and anthropologist, I greatly appreciate the way the authors have organized, analyzed and presented the glyphs of the Classic Period Maya. Their approach mirrors the trajectory of epigraphic research toward linguistic interpretations.
What I like about this book:
1. Macri's linguistic training and knowledge of Cholan languages contributes a much needed perspective to decipherment.
2. The grapheme drawings were beautifully rendered by Looper.
3. The introduction brings the reader up to speed with important background informatioon on Maya epigraphy, linguistics, and an explanation and overview of how the new catalog works.
4. The graphics include many that were missing from previous works. For graphemes that were included in Thompson's Catalog of Glyphs, the Thompson number appear next to the grapheme.
5. Each catalog entry not only includes the grapheme, but all syllabic and logographic decipherments in both Cholan and Yucatecan, grammatical category,and a list of proposed decipherments by various scholars from 1566-2002.
6. There are separate appendices for proposed syllabic and logographic values rather than a confusing syllabury.
7. The English glosses for the graphemes are listed in a separate appendix
8. Appendix 4 provides a concordance of the equivalencies of the new catalog codes with Thompson numbers, Gates, Zimmerman, and Knorozov.
9. The Index at the end of the book is user friendly, demonstrating the foresightedness of this new way of organizing graphemes.
10. Unresolved debates about linguistic and epigraphic issues do not cloud the purpose of this book.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who has an interest or a passion for decipherment.
Bought a book? Don't think you'll read the glyphs!.......2003-11-22
The author offers an overall and sometimes confusing summary of glyph readings which circulated over the past ten years, both as published articles and as informal notes. The decipherment of the Maya script has made a real breakthrough in the nineties and Macri's catalog is a good summary of these recent advancements. Its major disadvantage, however, is that it will be of very little value for any beginner. Remember, it is just a sign list, an 'alphabet' of the Maya writing, not a grammar. Unfortunately, no grammar of Classic Maya Choltian has been published so far, largely because of major disagreements between several groups of scholars who offer contrasting reconstructions of this language.
What is good about Macri's book:
1. Sign grouping is quite convenient and it is easy to find a specific glyph.
2. The Appendix with its final sign-lists is also very useful
What is not so good...
1. The authors seem to be extremely conservative in their understanding of 'signs' in the Maya script. Both 'complex' signs like UCH' and ligatures (conflations when the graphic representation of both signs is affected) are underrepresented.
2. Sometimes, it is hard to understand the politics behind the choice of a particular reading and not all possible alternatives are cited (some people may not be happy with such approach).
3. As all previous catalogs, this one does not make a conscious attempt to grasp the range of graphic variants of each sign (which is sometimes just overwhelming). Instead, it relies on individual examples.
Product Description
Choose from 39 possible endings in this 144 page book with 35 black and white illustrations! Perfect for both boys and girls. Ages: 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 Manufacturer: Marlon Creations
Customer Reviews:
Mysterious and Interesting.......2007-01-09
I would reccomend this entire series, and especially this book. The cover really jumped out at me. Once I picked it up, I couldn't put it down. Any young reader would enjoy this book. You travel back to the time of the Mayans to find your friend Tom. You end up with a whole lot more on your hands than just your friend's disappearance. You run into aliens, Mayans, and a whole bunch of adventure. You might end up in jail, you might find your friend Tom, or you could even travel to outer space. This book won't leave you disappointed. Each turn of the page and decision adds a new level to the mystery. You have to deal with the tradition of human sacrifice with the Mayans, as well as dangerous strangers. Watch out and you just might make it out alive.
Average customer rating:
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Lost Civilizations - The Mayans (Lost Civilizations)
Stuart A. Kallen
Manufacturer: Lucent Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Board book
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ASIN: 1560067578 |
Book Description
The Mayan pyramids that stand today on the Yucatan Peninsula are a stunning reminder of a powerful civilization that ruled the people of southern Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala and Belize for more than 6,000 years. The Mayans comprehensively explores the politics and culture of the Mayan Empire in vivid detail from 1500 BC to the 16th-century arrival of the Spanish conquistadors.
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