Ancient Tamil Nadu

The skill of the Mayan astronomers is also well known:

"Recent studies suggests a link between Indus Valley and Mayans of Central America. The studies focused on the calendars of the two advanced civilizations. The Indus Valley inhabitants followed a calendar based on the movements of Jupiter, and the Mayans followed one based on the Venus. In the Puranas, a secondary Hindu scripture, Jupiter, Brihaspati, was acknowledged to be the leader of the gods, while Venus, Shukra, was the leader of the asuras. The texts further state that the devas and asuras lived on opposite sides of the Earth.

Mexico and India are at opposite sides in longitude. The correspondences were pointed out by B. G. Siddarth, director of the B. M. Birla Science Centre in Hyderabad. He also said the Hindu story of the churning of the ocean has been found in carvings in Mexico, as well Mayan representations of a tortoise carrying twelve pillars similar to Indian illustrations. Dr. Ganapati Sthapati of Chennai, a foremost expert on Vastu shatra, the ancient Hindu architecture, has visited the Mayan structures in Central America and found many similarities between the design and construction methods of the Mayans and that of the ancient Hindus.” [13]

Ceren was a name of Ceylon, some Mayan ruins in El Salvador are called Ceren. Mayon was one of the names of Ceylon's cult religions, still existing among a few aboriginals living on the island.

Asuramaya and the Mayans

“Modern students of the ancient Mayan numerical glyphs have found that the dating of major series of events noted on Mayan stelae invariably give such reckonings in terms of the time elapsed since a date known as 4 Ahau 8 Cumhu. They know that for the Maya chroniclers this date represented a commencement point in time-reckoning of such awesome magnitude that it was central to all else in subsequent Maya history; but they don't know what it meant or why it was so important to the latter.  Among other ancient nations only one, the Hindu peoples of the Indian subcontinent, is known to have developed a system of calendrics accounting for such vast periods of time. For computing the age of the earth and various geological and other epochs, as well as the age of mankind, the learned Brahman caste still employs a Tamil calendar derived from archaic astronomical data, known as the "Tirukkanda Panchanga" (The Secret Doctrine, II:49-51).” [20]

Other diverse commentators corroborate these facts:

"The Mayan culture flourished in Mesoamerica during the early Christian era, before being completely wiped out by the Spanish conquest. Astronomy played a significant role in Mayan culture. Venus in particular had a pre-eminent status. Testimony to this rich tradition is borne out by Mayan temple art and the few available Codices, or sacred books, of the Mayans. Western scholars have attempted to relate the Mayan concepts to those of Greek astronomy. The sidereal Mayan astronomy is more akin to the Hindu system and does not easily fit into the Greek model.” [21]  

The theories about Greek astronomy are related to the misapprehension of cycles by historians and researchers down the ages – both east and west. Greece is a much more modern and recent culture, India and the Mayans are very ancient. Confusion has arisen do to cross fertilisation of ideas between Greece and India in the past few thousand years, as well as the ‘Greek-centric’ view held by many western historians.

”Striking similarity is found between certain Mayan and Puranic stories, and their related astronomical interpretation. In the Puranas, Lord Vishnu is represented as resting on the serpent Ananta or Sesa, after having dissolved all creation. The serpent represents the eternity of time (Ananta), and the "remainder" (Sesa) in subtle form, of prakriti, the germ of all that has been and will be. After waking up from the yoganidra, Vishnu rides on the eagle Garuda. Both Garuda and Sesa are shown in association with Vishnu in the temples of India. It is said that Garuda represents the Vedas and the solar deities, and Sesa represents the watery deities. The serpent [Naga] is of great significance in the Mayan culture also. A supreme example is the serpent of sunlight and shadow seen at Chichén Itzá. At the time of the equinoxes, as the Sun moves from east to west, a pattern of light and shadow appears on the west balustrade of the north stairway of the Castillo at Chichén Itzá. This display resembles a descending snake whose head is the monumental serpent head carved out of stone at the foot of the stairs. The feathered serpent represents the Mayan God Kukulcan, who is associated with rain water and new life, among other things. Kukulcan appears to be Sesa and Garuda combined into one.” [22]

"In the book The Conquest of the Maya by J. Leslie Mitchell, he explains that the basis of the old Maya empire was not of the work of the ancestors of the present day Maya, but was an import from the same foreigners that built the palaces and temples of the Chams and Khmers in Cambodia, and the temples in Java. He also points out the similarities between the Maya rain-god Chac and the Vedic Indian Indra, and the Maya monkey-god and the Vedic Hanuman. The Vedic origin is further enhanced by the frequency that the elephant motif is found in Maya art, especially the earlier works of the Maya, such as at Copan, although the elephant never existed in the region.” [23]

"One reason for these similarities between the Americas and India is that in ancient Vedic times there were two great architects, Visvakarma of the demigods or Aryans, and Maya of the asuras. Surya Siddhanta was revealed to Mayasura by Sun. The Mayan people, also known as technicians, were no doubt named as such because of being connected with this person named Maya or Mayasura and Maya Danava. They were a part of his clan or tribe. They had fallen away from the Vedic way of life and were sent or escaped to the region of Central America. They also carried with them much of the science of astronomy and navigation for which this Mayasura was known. Mayasura’s knowledge is more fully explained in the classic work of Indian Vedic astronomy known as the Surya Siddhanta for which he is given credit. Many people have wondered from where the Mayan acquired their astronomical knowledge. This would explain how the Mayan people had such a high degree of understanding in astronomy, from which they also developed their calendar. The Mayan calendar was a science they had long developed, carrying it with them from their previous location and civilization.” [24]  

Atlantean Islands

This map is one of many speculations of the location of the Atlantean islands. It has been included to illustrate how it would not have been very difficult for the ancient Mayans (renowned mariners), to ‘island hop’ their way across the Atlantic from Africa to where Guatemala is today; if they came the same route as the Egyptians from India and kept heading west.

"Like the Vedic culture, the Maya had a pantheon of demigods, many of which have similarities to the Vedic deities. Mayan gods like Xiuhtechutli and Xipe Totec have their Vedic counterparts in Indra and Agni. Indra, like Xiuhtechutli, was the rain god and guardian of the Eastern Quadrant, and Agni, similar to Xipe Totec, was the god of sacrificial fire, born in wood and the life force of trees and plants. Then there is the Vedic Ushas, the beautiful goddess of Dawn or Sky, who is similar to the Mayan view of Venus, goddess of Dawn … Furthermore, hymn 121 of the book ten in the [Hindu] Rig Veda is very similar to the description of creation as found in the [Mayan] Popul Vuh.” [26]  

None of this pantheon of gods would be complete without the legendary Quetzalcoatl:

”A Mesoamerican Christ: Quetzalcoatl is to the New World what Christ is to Europe [or Krishna to India]: the center of a religious cosmology and the pre-eminent symbol of the civilized nations of Mesoamerica. Both were considered to be men who ascended into heaven upon their death; Christ to sit at the right hand of God, Quetzalcoatl to become the Morning Star [Venus]. Both were tempted by evil powers; Christ by Satan, Quetzalcoatl by the wizard-god Tezcatlipoca. And both were prophesied to one day return to earth, Christ as the Prince of the Kingdom of Heaven, Quetzalcoatl as a god-king returned to claim his kingdom in Central Mexico. To understand the life and teachings of Jesus Christ is to understand Christianity, the root religion of what we refer to as Western Civilization. To understand the life and mystery of Quetzalcoatl is to understand the religious thought of what we call Mesoamerica.” [27]

Quetzalcoatl

Mayan Calendar

“The Vedic, Maya, and Hopi calendars all describe our current age as the fourth world. The Maya and Hopi calendars also describe the ending of a great age around the year 2000 (several Mayan calendar cycles end at winter solstice, 2012). Mayan cycles describe the Earth's Great Year (a ~24,000-year cycle caused by the Earth's wobble) as well as an additional rotation of our sun and galaxy around Alcyon, central star of the Pleiades. The Maya are one of many cultures (as far-flung as the Australian Aborigines, the ancient Greeks, and several Native American nations) with stories about the Pleiades.” [28]

“Incredibly, at the early Maya site of Izapa in southern Mexico, the galactic cosmology and a profound spiritual teaching are preserved. Izapa speaks to us of the Galactic Alignment in 2012 as a transformative nexus in time, a still-point turnabout, inviting us to reconnect with our cosmic heart and eternal source.” [29]

"The doctrine of the World's Ages (from Hindu Yugas) was imported into Pre-Columbian America ... the Mexican sequence is identical with the Hindus ...The essential fact remains that they were derived from a common source ... It would be ridiculous to assert that such a strange doctrine was of spontaneous origin in different parts of the Old and New Worlds." [30]  

The above passage is a more exoteric view but nonetheless testifies to the origin of Mayan astronomy. These yugas contain other yugas within them, or cycles within cycles:

“The Dvapara Yuga  differs for each Race. All races have their own cycles, which fact causes a great difference.  For instance, the Fourth Sub-Race  of the Atlanteans  was in its Kali-Yug , when destroyed, whereas the Fifth was in its Satya or Krita Yuga. [Approximately 4 million years ago.]  The Aryan  Race is now in its Kali Yuga [3,102 BC] , and will continue to be in it for 427,000 years longer, while various “family Races ,” called the Semitic , Hamitic, etc., are in their own special cycles.  The forthcoming 6th Sub Race [of the Fifth Rootrace or 5.6] —which may begin very soon—will be in its Satya (golden) age while we reap the fruit of our iniquity in our Kali Yuga.” [31]

These dark and golden ages (Kali and Satya) overlap as one cycle finishes and another starts. The above statement is confirmed in the Puranas where Lord Krishna tells Ganga Devi that a Golden Age will come in the Kali Yuga. Lord Krishna predicted that this Golden Age will start 5,000 years after the begnning of the Kali Yuga, and will last for 10,000 years.

The Mayan Calendar measures the unfolding evolution of consciousness - as do all cycles that are impelled by the rays, planets, yugas or zodiac signs; they all embody a much higher consciousness it is actually two calendars that are closely inter-related: The Tzolkin (Daily Calendar) of 260 days, and the Tun (Prophetic Calendar) of 360 days. These two 'calendars' intermesh like gears, the smaller Tzolkin with 260 ‘teeth’ (days) intermeshing with the larger Tun (360 ‘teeth’/days), then as the Tzolkin turns so does the Tun.

It takes 72 turns of the Tzolkin calendar ('gear') and 52 turns of the Tun calendar ('gear') for each 'tooth' (day) of each 'gear' (calendar) to come into contact. i.e. 18,720 days (72 x 260 or 52 x 360), or approximately 51 Gregorian calendar years. (18,720/365).

 
Mayan Calendar or Sunstone

The carvings in the stone represent the four cycles of creation and destruction. The skull at the center depicts the god, Tonatiuh, the fifth sun. The calendar was also adopted by the Aztec and Toltec nations after renaming the days and months.

The Maya of the Mayan Calendar (Maya = Illusion)

“One of the secrets of initiation is concerned with the apprehension of cycles , and with their duration … before a man is considered a true occultist .” [32]

One problem with comprehension of the Mayan Calendar is the hype about it in ‘New Age’ circles. Esoterically the whole subject is ‘glamoured’ - there have been so many speculations, claims and distortions by academics, mystics and ‘new agers’.
The exact astronomical date in 2,012 is something that the general public tend to get somewhat fixated upon, creating confusion, fear and much futile speculation; this is a perennial problem and other ‘significant dates’, including the yearly cycle of eclipses, that continually attract superstitious and uninformed reactions. John Major Jenkins, a leading scholar of the Mayan Calendar, has the following to say:

“So, in point of fact, we have a previous testimonial of Don Alejandro, from an interview he did with reporters that was published as "The Mayan Worldview of the Universe" by Patrisia Gonzales and Roberto Rodriguez, Universal Press Syndicate. The Denver Post, January 2, 2000. In it, we read:
"Based on thousands of years of astronomical observation, a cataclysm is indeed predicted by indigenous elders, as opposed to "prophesized." No one is predicting that at the strike of midnight, Dec, 20, 2012, the world will end. Instead, Mayan elders predict that the cataclysm can occur within a year or 100 years—and the cause would be something astronomical as opposed to metaphysical."

[Jenkins continues…] I've always agreed with this idea, that we should think of the 2012 end date as being a "zone" stretching on the order of decades. I don't agree with the above view that the end date is only an astronomical event, for the physical dimension and the metaphysical (or spiritual) dimension unfold in parallel. We further read in the interview that:

"We don't know what will happen in the next few days or in the next 12 years. What we do know is that it wouldn't hurt to listen to the worlds of Don Alejandro who said that on Dec. 20, 2012 Mother Earth will pass inside the center of a magnetic axis and that it may be darkened with a great cloud for 60 or 70 hours and that because of environmental degradation, she may not be strong enough to survive the effects. 'It will enter another age, but when it does, there will be great and serious events. Earthquakes, marimotos (tsunamis), floods, volcanic eruptions, and great illness on the planet Earth. Few survivors will be left.'"

[Jenkins continues…] “Thus, beginning on December 20, as stated, the events stretch almost three full days ("60 or 70 hours") through December 21st. The Earth passing "inside the center of a magnetic axis" is a striking description and sounds like the way I described the alignment in the last chapter to Maya Cosmogenesis 2012. "Darkened by a great cloud" almost sounds like a reference to the dark-rift in the Milky Way. Notice the difference between this conception of "earth in the darkness" and my alignment description — where I describe it as the sun passing through the dark-rift, through the "galactic axis," with different magnetic or gyroscopic effects on either side. I suppose Don Alejandro's wording works fine, it's just a translation or interpretation of where the effect is really to be felt (on Earth, ultimately) …

"He [Carlos] said Mayan Daykeepers view the Dec. 21, 2012 date as a rebirth, the start of the World of the Fifth Sun. It will be the start of a new era resulting from and signified by the solar meridian crossing the galactic equator, and the earth aligning itself with the center of the galaxy. At sunrise on December 21, 2012 for the first time in 26,000 years the Sun rises to conjunct the intersection of the Milky Way and the plane of the ecliptic. This cosmic cross is considered to be an embodiment of the Sacred Tree, The Tree of Life, a tree remembered in all the world's spiritual traditions. Some observers say this alignment with the heart of the galaxy in 2012 will open a channel for cosmic energy to flow through the earth, cleansing it and all that dwells upon it, raising all to a higher level of vibration."" [33]

Interesting to note that the winter solstice period (in the northern hemisphere) will have its inherent symbolism of the ‘greatest darkness’ of winter extraordinarily amplified within the cosmic macrocosm in 2012. The winter solstice is a time of initiation where the candidate to the mysteries must ‘find their way through the dark’. The conjunction of the Sun with Pluto in December 2012 signifies the darkness of the underworld experience, transformation and initiation. The Moon is conjunct Uranus in Aries, reflecting the new revolutionary cycle that will begin in consciousness. Perhaps Humanity has an opportunity to do this en masse? A shift that may occur several years around this date is confirmed by other sources:

“In the time of the Buddha  and through the stimulation He produced there was a great gathering in of Arhats  [4^th degree Initiates]. These were men who had achieved liberation through self initiated effort. This period, in our Aryan  race, marked a climax for the East . Since then the tide of spiritual life has steadily flowed westward, and we may now look for a corresponding climax in the West , which will reach its zenith between the years 1965 and 2025.” [34]