Twelve twenty-one, twenty-twelve. Has a haunting ring to it,
doesn=92t it? December 21, 2012. That is the date that Patrick
Geryl has identified in his book =93How to Survive 2012=94 for a
world cataclysm to occur. Down through the ages many have
forecast such an event and, of course, the physical event has
never happened in this era of history.
Geryl=92s foundational basis for the prediction has included his
cracking of codes, the unveiling of the magnetic reversal of the
sun, translating hieroglyphs, the study of old maps, the
decoding of astrological clues and geological research. From
this he has concluded:
1. Sudden reversals and pole ****fts are natural to the earth,
and occur with clock-like regularity. The result is world-wide
destruction, which is sup****ted by paleo-magnetic evidence and
early manuscripts.
2. The reversal of the poles is attributable to the harmonic
cycle of the magnetic fields of the sun.
3. Polar reversals can be calculated precisely on the basis of
the sunspot cycle theory or the magnetic field theory, which the
Maya and the Old Egyptians were privy to. These secrets are
contained in the Labyrinth of Hawara, a huge complex consisting
of three thousand rooms.=94
Geryl=92s conclusion, however frightening, should be considered by
anyone who is concerned about the state of the world and the
daily patterns of the destruction of life and ecological damage
that are manifest every day in some part of our planet. As a
society we in the United States have become expectant of and
calloused to such re****ts from third world countries, whether
the news is of evil political regimes, horrifying natural
disasters, the destroying of resources such as the rape of the
rain forests for benefit of a few greedy businessmen, or the
trafficking of humans or body parts for monetary gain.
Our own backyard is not without the taint of questionable
activity as evidenced in the out-of-control tactics of those who
would harm others, either through deliberate or unintended
consequences of their actions, all in the name of progress and
the gain of wealth for a few. The cries of global warming, or
cooling, depending on whatever the flavor of the day is, seems
paramount in the thought-process of much of our daily lives.
=93Paper or plastic?=94
In today=92s world one does not have to delve very far in order to
conclude that the planet is in trouble, and that something needs
to be done in order to mitigate its destruction. Geryl points
out that the coming pole ****ft is inevitable, and that the time
is now to make preparations for those who intend to be around
after The Event, and want to be a part of the rebuilding of
planet earth.
For many of those who accept the Baha=92i Teachings, Geryl=92s
forecast has some basis for consideration. You will remember
that when =92Abdu=92l-Baha sailed on the Cedric in 1912 concurrent
with his historic visit to the United States, He related that
before a hundred years had passed, waters would reach the lower
floors of the New York City skyscrapers. Now, isn=92t that
interesting? It is also interesting that had He sailed on the
Titanic, as He was first scheduled to do, He may not have
survived the tragedy and been able to give another nine years of
His message of hope and salvation to the souls of the world.
When later recalling the sinking of the Titanic, =91Abdu=92l-Baha
said =93=85Therein is a mystery; but whatever the reason and
mystery, it was a very sad occurrence, one which brought tears
to many eyes and distress to many souls. I was greatly affected
by this disaster. Some of those who were lost voyaged on the
Cedric with us as far as Naples and afterward sailed upon the
other ****p. When I think of them, I am very sad indeed. But when
I consider this calamity in another aspect, I am consoled by the
realization that the worlds of God are infinite; that though
they were deprived of this existence, they have other
op****tunities in the life beyond, even as Christ has said, "In
my Father's house are many mansions."
=91Abdu=92l-Baha continues =94=85Let no one imagine that these words
imply that man should not be thorough and careful in his
undertakings. God has endowed man with intelligence so that he
may safeguard and protect himself. Therefore, he must provide
and surround himself with all that scientific skill can produce.
He must be deliberate, thoughtful and thorough in his purposes,
build the best ****p and provide the most experienced captain;
yet, withal, let him rely upon God and consider God as the one
Keeper. If God protects, nothing can imperil man's safety; and
if it be not His will to safeguard, no amount of preparation and
precaution will avail.=94
-- `Abdu'l-Bah=E1, =93The Promulgation of Universal Peace=94 pages 46,
47, 49
Although Geryl does not seem to be coming from a background of
religious urgency, as many others are wont to do, he provides a
glimmer of hope himself, as stated on the back cover of the
book. =93In the face of this immense cataclysm, Geryl urges
mankind to prepare and endure. The outlook is bleak, but the
obstacles are not insurmountable. In this book, Geryl provides
the blueprint for those wi****ng to survive the disaster to
prepare themselves and prevail. He explains in detail the myriad
problems survivors will encounter, and the precautions that need
to be taken to overcome them. It is his hope that with this
information in hand, enough people will live on to reestablish
civilization and continue human life on earth.=94
Baha=92is are additionally aware that not only the Center of the
Covenant, =91Abdu=92l-Baha, forewarned of a time of great upset and
tribulation for the world, but His Father, the Prophet- founder
and Holy Manifestation of the Baha=92i Faith, Baha=92u=92llah, shared
His thoughts of future events as well. =93The world is in travail,
and its agitation waxeth day by day. Its face is turned towards
waywardness and unbelief. Such shall be its plight, that to
disclose it now would not be meet and seemly. Its perversity
will long continue. And when the appointed hour is come, there
shall suddenly appear that which shall cause the limbs of
mankind to quake. Then, and only then, will the Divine Standard
be unfurled, and the Nightingale of Paradise warble its melody.=94
-- =93Gleanings from the Writings of Bah=E1'u'll=E1h=94 pages 118, 119
Although the First Guardian did not overtly discuss future
physical events, the Second Guardian did. He reminded us of the
events foretold by Baha=92u=92llah and =91Abdu=92l-Baha, and added his
own take on upcoming cataclysmic events when he admonished the
believers to move to the higher altitudes prior to 1963 in order
to survive what he saw as an impending catastrophe. He cited
reasons for his views from Charles Hapgood=92s 1959 book, =93The
Earth=92s ****fting Crust.=94 Since a major world catastrophe did not
occur on or about 1963 in a physical sense, those who knew of
his prediction viewed it in error.
However, knowledgeable Orthodox Baha=92is have a different take.
They understand that a spiritual cataclysm of unimagined
consequence did occur in 1963 when the illicit Universal House
of Justice lacking a guardian at its head was formed by the
Heterodox Baha=92is in Haifa, Israel, on Mount Carmel. A more
tragic event could not be imagined by anyone understanding the
consequences of tem****arily derailing the foundation of God=92s
Kingdom on earth. This event will go down in history as probably
the single-most reason for the self-destructive state that the
world is in today, and the single greatest reason for the
severity of the destruction that will occur during the impending
physical forces that will decimate the planet.
Now, having said all that, what does Patrick Geryl have to say
about survival? After laying a background based upon secrets of
a distant past, he begins discussing his views on his
expectations of what we might expect during and after The Event
itself. It is not pretty. And from his descriptions of the
resulting severity of the situation one wonders how anyone at
all could survive. Notwithstanding his bleak outlook, he forges
onward with the rebuilding process. This is the tough part,
particularly for those who have not prepared to some degree. As
I read further my personal thoughts were that it would be a
blessing to not survive. However, remembering =92Abdu=92l-Baha=92s
admonishment quoted earlier, we must all use our intelligence
and do the best we can to survive any situation, particularly
one where the baggage of the past will be torn away, with only
its memory remaining for those who participate in the rebuilding
process.
It is reasonable to assume that the destruction will differ
scientifically among myriad locales of our vast world
remembering that it is always dark for half the planet at any
given time, and that seasons are reversed as well. Geographic
differences will prevail and as awareness and discoveries
resume, a new planetary surface will be presented as a fresh
pallet to an artist. Geryl begins by citing desirable physical
traits for the =93new=94 communities to have a reasonable chance to
endure, based upon climate, ease of trans****t and the
probability of food production. He predicts that at the end of
2012 large areas of America and Europe will again be buried in
billions of tons of ice, as was the case 12,000 years ago, as
water is quickly displaced during The Event.
The English Channel will become land; a land bridge will
reappear between Siberia and North America. Although that part
of the new land will be more temperate; much of the continent
will be under a gigantic ice cap. Many islands will become
larger, Australia and New Guinea will form a very surprisingly
large expanded continent. Japan will combine with China=92s long
coastline. The Strait of Hormuz will dry up, with dire
consequences for oil activity and trans****t. The coasts of India
and China will regain a lot of land. Malaysia, Borneo and
Sumatra will combine with Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia.
Coastal zones of Brazil and Argentina will expand as well. An
illustration on page 103 shows the Indian subcontinent among a
part of the world that will increase in land mass. This should
please our Indian believers. However, Geryl cautions that any
area that had a lot of nuclear plants such as India or Japan
will be highly radioactive for thousands of years.
Page 103 also begins Geryl=92s discussion of where he would prefer
to be after The Event. =93A new land-mass will also show up=85 the
Aha-Men-Ptah, the legendary Atlantis that is now buried under
the South Pole. After the melting of the ice cap=93, he relates,
=93this is the ultimate place to restart civilization. In fact
this continent is my personal preference.=94
One would logically ask, =93How will the United States fare?=93 On
page 168 Geryl predicts that North America will undergo the
greatest amount of change. =93A large part of the continent will
disappear under the North Pole.=94 Then quickly expanding his
scope he continues, =93The ****ft will wipe out entire populations
of many animal species along with billions of people belonging
to the most advanced civilization ever.=94
In remembering the Second Guardian=92s thoughts, it is sobering to
realize that Geryl=92s predictions align with Mason Remey=92s theory
that the only logical place for Americans to populate would be
in the safety of the altitude of the Rocky Mountain chain. In my
view, even that will be hit and miss, and the climate will most
probably be extremely cold, with the expected difficulties of
normal colder climes exacerbated exponentially by the resulting
ravages of The Event.
The rebuilding process is thoroughly discussed in =93How to
Survive 2012=94, and the reading of this is sobering as well when
one realizes all the potential pitfalls involved. Drinking
water, lavatory facilities, and food production each presents
unique problems to overcome. Great detail is presented among the
many topics covered in the rebuilding of society. The building
of unsinkable boats is discussed as a means of survival along
with perceived pitfalls of pursuing that avenue.
Toward the end of the book Geryl discusses a problem that to me
may be the biggest hurdle of all. If one survives, or if groups
of population survive, how do they reconnect with others who may
have survived elsewhere on the planet? Whether we realize it or
not we have become so dependent on electronics that we are
nearly helpless as a society without some sort of electronic
assistance in every facet of our lives. The guiding force of
electronics in our communications, our automobiles, our crop
growing, our weather forecasting, and hundreds of other takenfor-
granted aspects of daily life will vanish.
Geryl opines that solar flares will destroy all the world=92s manmade
satellites. Enormous induction currents will destroy all
electronic equipment. These events will occur prior to the
earth=92s crust beginning to ****ft. Just think of the unlucky
souls using air or sea trans****tation if that should happen
suddenly. The book goes into great detail about the problems
associated with that, as a lead-in to the chapter =93Where Do We
Assemble After The Continental ****ft? This leads to the
discussion of former known civilizations and the manner in which
they handled their knowledge in face of expected catastrophe.
And finally Geryl devotes many pages to the mathematically
convincing proofs that substantiate his beliefs of impending
events.
Yes, if we survive, where do we assemble and how? When I read
this book the first time some months ago, it seemed the further
I got into it, the gloomier the situation became. At one point
it seemed that there was no possible way for anyone to survive
and be able to begin a new civilization. However, Orthodox
Baha=92is know that is not true. We know that all the world=92s
problems have a spiritual solution as a basis for actual
physical solutions. We should have been preparing, as a society
of mankind, for some event such as this from the beginnings of
the Baha=92i Faith in 1863. In fact, all of mankind have been
expecting some sort of event to occur at the end times that will
provide for God=92s Kingdom to come to earth. How many Christians
pray every single day for =93..Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done,
in earth as it is in Heaven=85=94
This quote of Baha=92u=92llah=92s, found on page 85 of =93The Kitab-i-
Aqdas=94 has figured prominently in my Baha=92i life. It seemed
applicable when I first met the Faith in the 1960s and has
become ever more prophetic in the intervening years. Now
remember, He uttered these words in the late 19th century. =93The
world's equilibrium hath been upset through the vibrating
influence of this most great, this new World Order. Mankind's
ordered life hath been revolutionized through the agency of this
unique, this wondrous System--the like of which mortal eyes have
never witnessed.=94
I would say that we humans have the assurance that some sort of
event will happen at some time in the future to facilitate what
Christ foretold as well as Baha=92u=92llah=92s prophecy. And it is a
fact that all the world=92s revealed religions expect some sort of
=93end days=94 activity when the True One would appear on earth and
lead it into eternity. In the views of the Orthodox Baha=92is, the
foundations of that society have already been presented to us,
and are now on earth in largely embryonic form, and will
eventually prevail at such time as humans are spiritually
capable of uniting under the banner of God and follow his
Covenant. We have the assurance in =92Abdu=92l-Baha=92s Will and
Testament that a world encompassing society will develop and be
the focal point of God=92s Kingdom.
Patrick Geryl=92s book gives us a probable preview of what we may
expect to physically happen in the future, on schedule in the
unending cycle of physical change that periodically has occurred
time after time over the millions of years of this planet=92s
life. Humans of intelligence should know that at some point this
will happen. The evidence is palpable. There are two qualities
that will have to prevail in the intelligent rebuilding of the
planet. Each one who intends to survive must do all the physical
preparation he/she is capable of doing, and foremost, he/she must be
spiritually prepared for The Event.
David Maxwell
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