Saturday 31 March 2012

The Chilam Balam and the Prophecy of the End-time Flood




The last page of the Dresdin Codex, which depicts a flood issuing from the mouth of a serpent-type creature



 
 
I have just recently came across a Mayan prophecy related to the 2012 phenomenon, which rather startlingly, appears to link the end of the cycle of 13 baktuns in the Long Count Calendar (which finishes at 21st December 2012) with the Second Coming of Christ and a massive flood that will bring about the end of the world. This is a rather striking parallel to the hypothesis I forward in my book Unveiling the Apocalypse, concerning the Second Coming and its relation to the future mega-tsunami event caused by the collapse of the volcano Cumbre Vieja on La Palma in the Canary Islands. The prophecy is found in the Chilam Balam - a syncreticistic text (in a similar vein to the Sibylline Oracles), compiled between the 17th-18th centuries, consisting of Christian reinterpretations of much older Mayan prophecies. It mentions prophecies about the coming of the Spaniards and the new religion of Christianity, which rapidly spread amongst the native peoples due to the miraculous intervention of Our Lady of Guadeloupe.
The most remarkable section of this text is undoubtedly that which mentions the Second Coming of Christ at the end of the Mayan calendar:


 
But when the law of the katun shall have run its course, then God will bring about a
great deluge again which will be the end of the world. When this is over, then our Lord
Jesus Christ shall descend over the valley of Jehoshaphat beside the town of Jerusalem where he redeemed us with his holy blood. He shall descend on a great cloud to bear true testimony that he was once obliged to suffer, stretched out on a cross of wood.
Then shall descend in his great power and glory the true God who created heaven and
earth and everything on earth. He shall descend to level off the world for the good and
the bad, the conquerors and the captives.
(Roys, R. The Book of Chilam Balam of Chumayel. Washington D.C, Carnegie Institution, 1933, p54. See the full text online here)
 
 
The first thing we should consider here is the timing of the Second Coming mentioned in this prophecy. On an initial reading, it seems that the text states that the Parousia will occur after a future deluge comes to destroy the world. But the chronology of this prophecy depends on how we interpret the clause "when this is over". As we have already noted, on a cursory glance it seems that this clause refers to the world-destroying flood, which would place the Second Coming after the world has already ended - which obviously doesn't make much sense, since there would be no one living to witness it. It thus seems more logical to read the clause "when this is over" as applying to the end of the "law of the katun" - which should be equated with the completion of the 13th baktun. This would give it the more sensible meaning of "when [the law of the katun] is over, then our Lord Jesus Christ shall descend over the valley of Jehoshaphat..."
The above prophecy found in the Chilam Balam has some interesting parallels to the oldest known Mayan inscription which speaks of the end of the thirteenth baktun, wherin we are told of the coming of a god known as Bolon-Yokte, who it is foretold will descend from the sky during this time period:
 
 
The Thirteenth ‘Bak’tun” will be finished
(on) Four Ajaw, the Third of Uniiw (K’ank’in).
? will occur.
(It will be) the descent(??) of the Nine Support? God(s) to the ?.”
 
 
This text, which was recently discovered at the archaeological site of Tortuguero in Mexico has generated widespread interest by 2012 enthusiasts, since it is the only known Mayan inscription which mentions the end of the 13th baktun. The "nine support god(s)" referred to here is the literal translation of the name Bolon-Yokte (the word bolon meaning "nine" in the language of the Maya). An alternative translation of this text is given by Maya scholar Sven Gronemeyer:
 
 
7 days 7 Uinals 0 Tuns and 8 Katuns, previously it happened. On 8 Chuen 9 Mak, it was completed for re-birthing*, the pibnaah of Ahkal K'uk. It was 2 days, 9 Uinals, 3 Tuns, 8 Katuns and 3 Baktuns before the 13th Baktun is completed on 4 Ahau 3 Kankin. Then it will happen - darkness, and Bolon-Yokte will descend to the (???)
 
 
Geoff Stray, a prominent writer on the 2012 phenomenon, explains some of the background of this god of the ancient Maya:
 
 
The first question this prompts is, "Who is Bolon-Yokte?" Bolon Yokte is the God of Nine Strides, (or the God of Numerous Strides, since Bolon, which means "nine" is often used as "many"). Sometimes referred to as B'olon Yookte' K'u, or B'olon Okte' K'uh, where K'uh means deity, he has also been called Ah Bolon Yocte of Nine Paths in the post-conquest books of Chilam Balam. The god has an association with the underworld, conflict and war, dangerous transition times, social unrest, eclipses and natural disasters like Earthquakes. He appears at the end of baktuns, assisted at the Creation of the current world and will be present at the next Creation in 2012. Other translations of the name are God of Nine Steps; the Nine-Footed God; and Jaguar-Foot-Tree, because the word bolon or balan (nine) was used by the Maya as a pun for balam (jaguar). The god was seen alternatively as nine individuals or as a collective god.

We can find another slightly altered version of this same myth in the Chilam Balam, just before the section which mentions the end-time flood and the Second Coming of Jesus:
 
 
Then it was that the lord of Katun 11 Ahau spread his feet apart. Then it was that the
word of Bolon ¢acab descended to the tip of his tongue. Then the charge of the katun
was sought; nine was its charge when it descended from heaven. Kan was the day when
its burden was bound to it. Then the water descended, it came from the heart of the sky for the baptism of the House of Nine Bushes. With it descended Bolon Mayel; sweet was his mouth and the tip of his tongue.
(Roys, R. The Book of Chilam Balam of Chumayel, p53)
 
 
Here we are told of the descent of this same nine-faceted god at the end of a fixed time period, under the slightly different name "Bolon Mayel", and we are told that water descends with him "for the baptism of the House of Nine Bushes". This prophecy recalls similar imagery depicted in the last page of the Dresdin codex (shown in the image at the top of this post), which contains an illustration of a serpent-like creature issuing flood-waters from its mouth (it is worth noting that this also recalls Rev 12:15: "The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood"). Many 2012 commentators believe that the last page of the Dresdin codex depicts the events expected at the end of the 13th baktun in the Mayan calendar.
 
 
As regular readers of this blog will know, the above prophecies sounds remarkably similar to the hypothesis I forward in my book Unveiling the Apocalypse - namely that the events that are predicted in the Bible to accompany the Parousia of Christ include the greatest earthquake known in human history, which in turn is also associated with a volcanic collapse that will result in a cataclysmic flood. In my book, I argue that the eschatological earthquake that is foretold to take place at the Second Coming will start a chain reaction of geophysical events which will include the eruption of the volcano Cumbre Vieja on La Palma in the Canary Islands.
Many geophysicists believe a huge section of this island could collapse into the Atlantic Ocean during its next eruption, producing a mega-tsunami which will devastate the eastern seaboard of the Americas, completely decimating the various islands, coasts and cities that lie within its projected radius.
In Unveiling the Apocalypse, I equate the future collapse of Cumbre Vieja with the "great mountain, burning with fire" being thrown into the sea in Rev 8:8, and the fall of Babylon described in Rev 18:
 
 
Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying,
“So will Babylon the great city be thrown down with violence, and will be found no more...
(Rev 18:21)
 
 
These interconnected verses in the Book of Revelation are both in turn are based on an oracle concerning the destruction of Babylon found in Chapter 51 of the Book of Jeremiah, which contains the following verses:
 
 
"Behold, I am against you, O destroying mountain, declares the Lord, which destroys the whole earth; I will stretch out my hand against you, and roll you down from the crags, and make you a burnt mountain. No stone shall be taken from you for a corner and no stone for a foundation, but you shall be a perpetual waste, declares the Lord." (Jer 51:25-26)

"How Babylon is taken, the praise of the whole earth seized! How Babylon has become a horror among the nations! The sea has come up on Babylon; she is covered with its tumultuous waves." (Jer 51:41-42)
"When you finish reading this book, tie a stone to it and cast it into the midst of the Euphrates, and say,‘Thus shall Babylon sink, to rise no more, because of the disaster that I am bringing upon her..." (Jer 51:63-64)
(See the earlier post Mega-tsunami)


I then go on to show that these passages are intimately related to various other portions of the Bible associated with the Second Coming of Christ, and the eschatological earthquake that is foretold to accompany this momentous event - which is variously referred to as the melting or casting down of mountains. It is also modelled after the events of the Exodus and theophany at Mt. Sinai - which some biblical commentators believe was connected to the eruption of the volcano Santorini at Thera and subsequent tsunami that destroyed the Minoan civilisation - the basis of the myth of Atlantis (see the earlier post King David's Vision of the End-time?).
For example, the following passage taken from the Book of Habbukuk contains imagery associated with the Second Coming, and is framed in the context of a combination of events which includes the "shaking of the nations", the "scattering of mountains" and "the surging of mighty waters":


 
God came from Teman, and the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah. His splendor covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise. His brightness was like the light; rays flashed from his hand; and there he veiled his power. Before him went pestilence, and plague followed at his heels.He stood and measured the earth; he looked and shook the nations; then the eternal mountains were scattered; the everlasting hills sank low. His were the everlasting ways. I saw the tents of Cushan in affliction; the curtains of the land of Midian did tremble. Was your wrath against the rivers, O LORD?
Was your anger against the rivers, or your indignation against the sea, when you rode on your horses, on your chariot of salvation? You stripped the sheath from your bow, calling for many arrows. Selah
You split the earth with rivers. The mountains saw you and writhed; the raging waters swept on; the deep gave forth its voice; it lifted its hands on high...
...You trampled the sea with your horses, the surging of mighty waters.
(Hab 3:3-10; 15)
 
 
Yet the prophecy found in the Chilam Balam appears to suggest that this end-time flood associated with the Paraousia of Christ will bring about the end of the world - which is of course contrary to God's promise in the Book of Genesis:


Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, “Behold, I establish my covenant with you and your offspring after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the livestock, and every beast of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark; it is for every beast of the earth. I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”( Gen 9:8-11).


However the destruction that is estimated to be wrought by the Cumbre Vieja mega-tsunami will be confined to the coastal areas of Eastern America and Western Europe - which could not exactly be described as a world destroying flood - no matter how destructive such an event would be to these areas. As I argue in my book Unveiling the Apocalypse, this event could indirectly lead to the battle of Armageddon foretold in the Book of Revelation, rather than immediately consuming the entire planet in a flood comparable to the tales of Noah.
The loss of the cities on the Eastern seaboard of the USA would almost certainly plunge the entire nation into a state of crippling debt, bringing the country into financial turmoil. This in turn could theoretically lead to the dissolution of the union and the total economic collapse of the United States. And if the USA was no longer able to act in its current superpower status as the "world's policeman", this would leave the state of Israel completely open to the threat of invasion by the surrounding Arab nations - a prophesied end-time event that is found interspersed throughout Scripture, commonly known as the battle of Armageddon - a last world war that is foretold to consume humanity in a sea of fire.
Indeed, this sequence of events appears to be confirmed in the Book of Ezekiel:
 
 
But on that day, the day that Gog shall come against the land of Israel, declares the Lord GOD, my wrath will be roused in my anger. For in my jealousy and in my blazing wrath I declare, On that day there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. The fish of the sea and the birds of the heavens and the beasts of the field and all creeping things that creep on the ground, and all the people who are on the face of the earth, shall quake at my presence. And the mountains shall be thrown down, and the cliffs shall fall, and every wall shall tumble to the ground. I will summon a sword against Gog on all my mountains, declares the Lord GOD. Every man's sword will be against his brother. With pestilence and bloodshed I will enter into judgment with him, and I will rain upon him and his hordes and the many peoples who are with him torrential rains and hailstones, fire and sulfur.
(Ezek 38:18-22)
 
 
Also we can find an indication of a time period seperating this end-time flood from the battle of Armageddon, in the seven year gap between the inundation of Ireland and the end of the world described in the prophecies of St Patrick (see the earlier post on this subject here).
So this scenario is thus quite different from a singular destruction of the earth by means of a global flood.
However I don't think we should be overly concerned about the exact date of 21st December of this year. As Christ himself states in the Gospels:
 
 
“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man."
(Matt 24:36-39)
 
 
As I have stated many times before on this blog, I think there are a few prophesied events that are yet to happen before the collapse of Cumbre Vieja - such as the Second Pentecost, when the "gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come" (Matt 24:14). And as I shall be arguing in a future post, we can find some prophetic evidence to suggest that this event is connected with the martyrdom of at least one of the Two Witnesses described in Rev 11 (since we don't know if the ministries of the Two Witnesses are coterminous, or if they overlap, or are sepearated by a number of years).
I believe (and indeed hope) that if the above Mayan prophecies have any relevance, then they are concerned with a general period of time - and that the date of 21st December, 2012 is purely symbolic of a wider time span that will see these events unfold. Or at the very least that it refers to the other possible date relating to the end of the Mayan Long Count calendar - the year 2087 (see the earlier post The Date of the End-Time - 2012 or 2087, which also shows how orthodox Christian theology teaches that even pagan prophecy can contain valid insights into future events).






19 comments:

Anonymous said...

I've been reading your blog for about two months and I'm blown away by the in depth, scholarly, intelligent and all encompassing quality of your analysis. I've read Catholic Prophecy by Yves Dupont since 1980 over and over and over again (it's yellowed and brittle now!) and have felt recently that we are very near to "something". I've read many blogs about the end times that are good but nothing compares with yours. Yours is simply supurb. Please keep up the fine work.
rose m.

Emmett O'Regan said...

Thank you very much Rose!
I have that book too - it's one of the first I got on the subject. Yours sounds to be in the same sort of condition as mine - it's dog-eared and the cover has came away from the interior. There's a lot of spurious prophecies in it however, and the origins of some of the others are almost impossible to trace. But to its credit, there are many authenic prophecies in it as well - it's just not really any use if you need to find the original source material.

Anne said...

Emmett, Just take a look at this picture of the day (today) from Nasa. (what a volcano looks like when its angry)...you just would not mess with it!

http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/astropix.html

Jamey said...

I have Dupont's book too and have read parts of it. His own thoughts at the end (which he wrote in 1971) were quite prophetic regarding the liturgical change and its potential impact on the faith (I know I am a broken record bringing this topic up). There doesnt seem to be any information online about who he is or where he is now as it would have been interesting to contact him seeking the source of some of those prophecies if he was still alive.

Anne, Ned Dougherty (the Catholic that predicted 9/11) was shown visions of volcanic eruptions during his near death experience. Interestingly some scientists believe Yellowstone in the US is soon due for an eruption and that would be a megaevent.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-1350340/Super-volcano-Yellowstones-National-Park-soon-erupt.html

There was also the eruption in Iceland that crippled much of European airspace a couple of years back.

Will said...

Jamey,

Have you ever read the Great Pit theory regarding the US (based on the ridiculous amount of fracking and natural gas explotation)? It's similar to the Yellowstone Eruption theory, but it would easily explain how "Babylon" was destroyed by fire in a single day and all the world's merchants mourned her (for the loss of their profit) and all the ships watched her burn and it lit up the sky, as described in Revelations.

Jamey said...

Hi Will,

I have heard of fracking but not the great Pit Theory, it certainly makes sense in regard to that text of Revelation, and in a way shows how man with his greed inconjunction with the use of the technology he has developed can be the carpenter of his own cross. Based on a quick google search I couldnt find anything online on the Great Pit Theory.

Here in Kalgoorlie Western Australia we have some "superpits" where massive holes have been dug into the earth for mining purposes and there was a decent earthquake a couple of years ago there that many think is related.

If you scroll down the following link you will see some images of superpits, they are pretty awesome:
http://artblart.com/tag/australian-minescapes/

The conclusion to Emmett's book has a brilliant section devoted to technology and how it often turns against man if you haven't read it.

Emmett O'Regan said...

Thanks for the link to that pic Anne - it looks amazing! Mt. Etna erupted yesterday as well: http://uk.news.yahoo.com/mount-etna-erupts--amazing-video-captures-moment-volcano-blew-its-top.html
Jamey - I think most of Dupont's prophecies can be traced back to Rev Gerard Culleton's book The Prophets and Our Times, written in 1941. But that also doesn't contain the exact sources, but it does at least contain a bibliography. It will take some amount of digging to explore all of the sources of these prophecies, and I expect some will be impossible to find.

Anne said...

Thank you Jamey and Emmett. Before I found Emmett's fascinating book and compelling Blog. I had read somewhere that part of America's demise would come from the middle section of US, where there had never been any form of disruption on the earth's surface nor below (and that it would surprise and unsettle all scientists and geologists)... would in effect destroy most of the East coast etc. I had never heard of Cumbre Vieja's, but of course I bow to a more experienced source than the passing article which I read many years ago.

Jamey, yes indeed, Ned Dougherty was favoured with special graces also a heavy responsibility to tell the world of his personal experience, although, with due respect, I find his website a bit confusing and a mish mash of all sorts of things which, for me goes a little bit over the top, with other peoples experiences etc. I don't know what's real and what isn't, maybe its the way the layout of the website/blog has been put presented I don't get it...Thanks very much for the link I find what you say of great and genuine value.

In 2000/1 I went to the Cinema to watch the film Deep Impact, with Morgan Freeman giving a dreadful performance as a Black American President. I remember that I either slept or laughed my way through it, the acting was awful and storyline even worse. Older and wiser than I am now, the story does not seem so incredible, a Black President, meteorite crashing into earth, Tsunami causing the entire East coast of America to dismantle and dissolve, new formation of the entire globe as a consequence, people being humbled and helping one another with gentleness and industrious fraternity. The storyline may not now be so absurd as I once thought. Maybe I ought to revisit the film...

With every good wish. a

Anne said...

...having said this, it still doesn't make it a good film!...

Jamey said...

Hi Anne,

Bit harsh on Morgan Freeman's acting there!

I understand what you are saying, I also find it hard to know what is the truth or what is crazy conspiracy theory. In regards to Ned's monthly locutions one of the issues I did have is in regard to a message where he was told we are to listen to the modern prophets (I assume the Medjugorje seers listed on his website where there have been all sort of scandals).

Also the Vatican exorcist Gabriel Amorth said that 95% of locutions are diabolical so there is definate need for discernment and Ned himself acknowledges in his dvd on his nde that he was chasing spiritual experiences after the nde. I personally think the 12 or so prophecies revealed in his book are a warning from heaven and the general trends which were highlighted are now occuring at a greater velocity (eg increasing of environmental disturbances, the attempts by a few to control the world, etc).

The interesting thing is if his nde is genuine then it appears that aborted babies do see the face of God as he saw Jesus looking at him whilst protectively holding the children he chose not to have when a nightclub owner. I understand that some who believe in the traditional view of limbo will have issue with this.

Emmett, thanks for the reference to Reverand Culleton's book.

Emmett O'Regan said...

The International Theological Commission moved to do away with the concept of limbo in 2007, given that it seriously undermines theodicy:
http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/cti_documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_20070419_un-baptised-infants_en.html

Jamey said...

That document is well written.

It would seem very harsh that babies who for example are aborted or miscarried would never see the face of their creator for something that they had absolute no control over, this does seem a positive development.

Man some of those old saints could be hard, eg St Augustine believing unbaptised babies and children would be consigned to the pains of Hell for all eternity.

Will said...

Jamey, here is one of the only links I could find to a site that carries the essay/article. The original page no longer works and the pictures have all been delinked.
http://www.fourwinds10.net/siterun_data/science_technology/energy_free_energy/news.php?q=1204927572

Interesting theory though.

Jamey said...

Cheers Will that was an interesting article I couldnt see the images and most links contained didnt work, but the arguments seem reasonable especially in relation to Rev 9:1-2 and Rev 18:9-11.

Anonymous said...

Hi, could the poured out deluge predicted for the end time referr to the latter (heaviest) rain of the holy spirit during the last days? Predicted in the bible this would be a time of miracles and power in the real lovers of God that would be greater than the time of the deciples. This falling of the spirit of god would destroy enemies and nations as a flood also. ?

Emmett O'Regan said...

Hi Anon,

I think that the end-time deluge refers to the future event which I detail in the below post:

http://unveilingtheapocalypse.blogspot.co.uk/2011/08/mega-tsunami.html

Anonymous said...

THE GOOD SHEPHERD

Lord, carry us safely on You shoulders
our feet hurt from the rocks and the boulders
the edgy stones, the thistles and the thorns
paved for us by coldhearted scorns

We feel total abandonment and rejection
we don't feel any compassionate affection
we CRY OUT
L O U D

Father, why? Have You forsaken us ?
satan uses even his blunderbuss
to annihilate us, bringing us to despair
"he can't touch you, not even a single hair !"

Offer Me all your troubles and pain
I will change it into eternal gain
not only for you, but for many in need
of conversion, salvation, waiting to be freed

I see everything, I know everything about you
My children, I will never forsake you My beloved crew
but I need souls who willingly, freely sacrifice
and offer their sufferings so souls can win the price

Take courage, My little ones, it's only a short time
I love you, I love you, You are so much Mine
Your Father will NEVER abandon you, NEVER EVER
especially NOT in these times of dangerous stormy weather.

I love you so much, Your Jesus.

Rita Biesemans, written after Eucharistic Adoration and a waterfall of tears
September 28 2012

Anonymous said...

As for your comment:
"However I don't think we should be overly concerned about the exact date of 21st December of this year. As Christ himself states in the Gospels:

“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father ...and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man."
(Matt 24:36-39)

Just a consideration of Thessalonians 5 that there will be children of the light, just as you and your readers are 'reading the signs," who "are not in darkness and who will not be suprised:

5 Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, 2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

4 But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. 5 You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. 6 So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober.

Emmett O'Regan said...

Thanks Anon! I never thought about 1Thes 5 in that way - it makes sense.
I do think that we will see these events unfolding in our lifetimes. But following the chronology of events outlined in biblical prophecy, it seems that the Second Pentecost must take place before the tribulation period begins. So I'm not too concerned about the significance of the 21st Dec 2012 in relation to any impending disaster. Once we begin to see a renewal of the Church however, it will be time to lift up our heads, for the Lord will be at the very gates:

“But be on your guard. For they will deliver you over to councils, and you will be beaten in synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them. And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all nations. And when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit."
(Mark 13:9-11)

“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates."
(Mark 13:28-29)


"And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come."
(Matt 24:14)

"Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
And he told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. As soon as they come out in leaf, you see for yourselves and know that the summer is already near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near.
(Luke 21:28-31)


"Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
that the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory? The LORD, strong and mighty, the LORD, mighty in battle! Lift up your heads, O gates! And lift them up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts,
he is the King of glory! Selah"
(Psalm 24:7-10)