For months now, there has been speculation based on a Mayan calendar that ends with the upcoming date of December 21, 2012. Could this be the date when the world will end, or could it mark the end of an era and the beginning of another? The Mayan Nobel Peace Prize winner Rigoberta Manchu commented that for them, December 21 is the birth of a new era and not the end of the world as some have promoted it to be. VON wanted to know what people locally expect to happen on this date, and here are some of the responses we received:
Thomas Sippi, Samara
“I already advised OIJ and ICE. We’re going to have three days of darkness. I was studying the plates after the earthquake and looking for information in German scientific magazines about the topic. So different information combined with that of the Mayans. 21-12-12 at 11 we’re going to have another earthquake in Costa Rica with a magnitude of 7.9. This will make plates collide. All of the volcanoes will activate. And afterward we’ll enter a new era of peace and love. Prepare and don’t be afraid. Prepare spiritually, cleanse yourselves of the past, forgive those who have caused you harm, return to your childhood and remember that life is beautiful.” |
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Veronica Flores Gomez, Guiones
“In reality I’m not a big believer in these things but we’ll have to wait to see what happens this day. Hopefully I’m with my family. But we’re all waiting for this day with anxiety, right.” |
Cinthia Maria Alfaro Sanchez, Samara
“I believe he’s going to come down, that the Lord is going to come, yes, but we don’t know the date. Yes, he’s going to come but not precisely on the 21st.” |
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Jose Justo Torres Torres, Nicoya
“Nothing. A normal day…. It could happen on any day. In September with the earthquake, no one said it would happen that day.” |
Evelio Mendez Sanchez, Nosarita de Nicoya
“I don’t believe any of this. Only God knows when because even when you ask when the Lord is coming, only God knows. My intention is to pray to God asking for him to show us mercy. We have to take into account that we are going to die [someday].” |
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Nahum Ward, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
"I think that it's going to be a beautiful day. It'll be the winter solstice."
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Simone Weiland, Germany
"We hope nothing, that all will be the same the next day."
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The mayans in Guatemala represent almost 80% of the population and gather in markets regularly. Nobel Price Rigoberta Manchu says they will hold a private ceremony on December 21. Los mayas de Guatemala representan casi el 80% de la poblacion y suelen reunirse en los mercados regularmente. El premio Nobel de la Paz, Rigoberta Manchu, dice que ellos tendran una ceremonia privada el 21 de Diciembre.
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