by Rick Levine

Are you scared? Don’t be! As we approach the infamous date of the end of the Mayan calendar on December 21, 2012, fear continues to mount that it really is the end of days. But fortunately we’re here to set the record straight about that.

Countless books are now available that describe a Doomsday scenario, and of course Sony Pictures already released the John Cusack movie 2012 years ago, the major motion picture with a promotional website called   “whowillsurvive2012.com.” As Sony stated in its film promotion, “Never before has a date in history been   so significant to so many cultures, so many religions, scientists and governments. 2012 is an epic   adventure about a global cataclysm that brings an end to the world and tells the heroic struggle of the   survivors.”

The good news is that the world will not really end in 2012, although you don’t need to be an astrologer   to see how quickly things are changing. You can get key dates and prediction for the year ahead with a Big Picture Yearly Astrology Forecast, but whatever big changes are coming, you can trust we will still be here.

Civilization as we know it seems to be in a precarious situation,   with growing political unrest and financial stresses warning us that we are repeating epic mistakes from   our own cultural history. For example, we have just witnessed the sharpest economic downturn since the   Great Depression. Differences in political ideologies and spiritual beliefs continue to fuel increasingly   destructive wars and unrest across the Middle East. Environmental threats make our water and food supplies more and more scarce; meanwhile,   we are powering our world with a diminishing reserve of oil and others resources. So it’s no surprise   that so many people — experts and laymen alike — are predicting that the fabric of our entire society   is dangerously at risk.

Nothing to fear but fear itself

But if you look to the skies, you’ll see there’s nothing to fear on that notorious day in 2012. Astrologers watch the cycles of the Sun, Moon and planets to understand the changing nature of time and   to put these shifts into historical perspective. For example, we had a dose of culture-wide panic at the   threshold of this century. The start of the year 2000 — or “Y2K” — was as an apocalyptic date; some   predicted that it would be the beginning of the “end times.” But astrologers could see then that there   were no planetary alignments significant enough to warrant this kind of fear.

2012 is different — there are significant astrological factors that indicate these are truly significant   times. But let’s clear one thing up right away: there won’t be a cataclysmic event on December 21, 2012.   It’s been claimed that on this first day of winter, the Sun will line up perfectly with the center of the   Milky Way Galaxy and that this will confirm the ancient Mayan prophecies. In other words, many claim that   the Sun’s change of position will mark the end of time. But there is a scientific problem with this   reasoning: The Sun’s alignment to the galactic center on Winter Solstice moves at the rate of one degree   every 72 years! Therefore, this cosmic event is so slow-moving that it lasts more than a decade.

As astrologers track the cycles of planets, they pay special attention to the lunation cycle, which is   the monthly flow of New Moons and Full Moons. This is how they are able predict the impact these   movements will have on the personal and emotional cycles of our daily lives. Meanwhile, astrologers also   track the activities of the slower-moving outer planets (the ones with the longest orbits), which create   their own rhythms and are more closely related to large historical cycles.

For example, Uranus symbolizes sudden changes that release explosive energy, which is why astrologers   refer to it as “The Great Awakener.” Pluto symbolizes total metamorphosis. The deep transformation that’s   associated with mysterious Pluto is dramatic and complete, like a caterpillar evolving into a butterfly,   which is why the profound cultural shifts of the 1960s corresponded with a conjunction between surprising   Uranus and passionate Pluto in 1965-1966.

In the summer of 2012, these two planetary harbingers of change will come into a hard 90-degree alignment   — their first since the mid-1960s. This dynamic angle between lightning-like Uranus and intense Pluto   recurs seven times from June 24, 2012 through March 16, 2015. This is the period of upheaval we should be   looking at, rather than focusing on a single day in 2012.

A great awakening

From an astrological perspective, we don’t have to wait until 2012 for the action to begin,   because we are already in a time of profound change, not unlike the 1960s. Now, however, we communicate   in ways that are far more revolutionary, due to our constant interconnection via cell phone, email,   Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and numerous other social networks. There are new political opportunities for   disenfranchised people all over the world to connect with one another, which may explain Barack Obama’s   meteoric rise to the Whitehouse over the fearful cries of the old-school American political machine. It   is this factor — our ability to communicate more quickly and openly — that will prevent the end of the   world.

Astrology is not about predicting fated events; it’s about being aware of cosmic movements so we can get   our timing right to make positive changes. The Astrology of 2012 is not about announcing the end of the   world. Rather, it’s a call to action. Each and every one of us has a job to do, because as the great   psychologist Carl Jung said, “The salvation of the world depends upon the salvation of the individuals   living in it.”

Some of us may play larger roles in the current changes by getting involved in community, national or   global politics. But each of us adds to the total picture when we live our individual lives responsibly.   Astrology reminds us that there is no time to waste — we are each an agent of change and each of us can   impact the big picture by replacing doubt with courage, and by conquering fear with love.

In other words, this is truly the time to “think globally and act locally.”