Since the beginning of time our ancestors marveled at the night-time sky. Archaeoastronomy is the interdisciplinary study of the role that the stars played in ancient cultures around the world. Megaliths like Stonehenge, the Great Pyramids of Egypt, or sites throughout Mexico are thought to be calendars that track the passage of time by observing the movements of stars. The sheer size of these sacred sites, along with the complex understanding of geometry and engineering it took to create them, provokes many important questions. Did humanity once have advanced civilizations long ago? Is it possible that we have had contact with or maybe are even related to star beings from other realms?
Down-To-Earth: Let’s keep the conversation grounded by defining terms and invoking the concept of relativity. If we were on any other planet or star in the entire universe looking at humans what would we call them? Our planet, and species, are literally floating through space in an endless galaxy of stars. From this perspective we would consider ourselves star beings. Likewise, the idea of “advanced civilizations” is also relative. The inquiry into advanced civilizations or star beings is merely relative to our point of reference.
Many ancient civilizations had an advanced understanding of math, geometry, and the movement of the stars. They tracked days and seasons for obvious reasons like planting and harvesting. Researchers and philosophers have begun wondering if ancient calendars were also used to track larger celestial cycles. Some argue that ancient civilizations were aware that our planet’s axis points to our pole-star which changes cyclically due to our slight planetary wobble over millennia. Central to this conversation have been popular discussions about prophecy and the Mayan Calendar..
Roots of a Movement: In the 1950’s sci-fi movies focused on alien invasions like War of the Worlds. In the 1970’s people shifted the conversation to explore the possible archaeological and historical evidence of advanced ancient civilizations. This naturally included inquiry about contact with beings from other realms. Books in the 70’s included Erich von Däniken’s Chariots of the Gods, Zecharia Sitchin’s 12th Planet, and Tony Shearer’s Lord of the Dawn.
Lord of the Dawn was influential for José and Lloydine Argüelles’ and inspired the Harmonic Convergence that happened decades later. Critics noted that these books were filled with mythology, fiction, and historical reconstruction yet this literature still influenced a generation. This represented a collective ‘awakening’ for that era.
The 50’s and 70’s were separated by the tumultuous civil rights era, the psychedelic 60’s, Woodstock, the American Indian Movement, first wave feminism, and the divisiveness of the Vietnam War. These were the seeds that sprouted into the modern meditation, yoga, self-help culture in the west. This is when talks of healing historical wounds through decolonization efforts, exploration into indigenous wisdom, and the environmental movement began to take root. These ideas also coincided with the beginning of our modern space age. After we landed on the moon and saw our first picture of Earth from outer-space human cosmic consciousness was born.
Harmonic Convergence 1987: Baby Boomers became Yuppies in the 1980’s and a new generation was bringing forth these ideas. José Argüelles’ writings inspired the Harmonic Convergence. This was the first globally synchronized event of its time on August 16–17, 1987.
These dates marked the end of twenty-two 52-year cycles (1,144 years). These twenty-two cycles were divided into 13 “Heaven Cycles” which began in 843 A.D. and ended on April 22, 1519 (the exact day Hernán Cortés landed in Mexico). According to Argüelles’ interpretation of the Mayan Calendar this is also when the 9 “Hell Cycles” began. This dark period was predicted to end 468 years later on August 16–17 of 1987.
The Evolution of an Idea: In the decades after the Harmonic Convergence there were some amazing advancements in science. Epigenetics, genome mapping, smart phones, quantum computing, nanotechnology, artificial intelligence, and the internet are just a few examples. Our whole understanding of who we are, where we came from, and what we are capable of has transformed in these past 50 years.
If you were to step into a time machine and go back to the early 70’s and see how much technology has advanced in this time, you’d feel like you were looking at a sci-fi book. A typical smartphone has more computing power than the large collection of “super computers” that were used to put the first humans on the moon.
There is now a lot of scientific research to validate the consciousness movement. We also now have the internet to broadcast our information to a global audience. If the seasons and the stars revolve around predictable cycles then so too does the evolution of consciousness. Are we yet at another cosmic turning point?
The best questions about ancient civilizations and beings from other planets remain unanswered. Yet humanity continues looking reaching for the stars. The journey is both inward and spiritual as well as outward and technological. There is a natural curiosity within us to explore all possibilities.
One thing that is certain is that we are experiencing an acceleration of technology and consciousness in our world. Many previously held ideas about the nature of reality are being challenged. We are seeing old belief systems and societal structures collapse. We are witnessing the emergence of something new–even if we don’t quite know what it is yet. The ability to challenge your own beliefs and have self reflection is so important. What we know now is going to change drastically in the coming decades.
There is a merging of the ancient and the future happening. We stand at the crossroads between the past and future. Now is a very potent time to be alive on our blue planet. As we spin through an endless galaxy of stars, we are dizzy with possibilities.
