Mayan Pyramid Destroyed

An ancient Mayan pyramid has been destroyed--to be used as filler for road construction.

One of the largest pyramids in Belize, near the Mexican border, has been bulldozed by a road construction crew.  The workers used backhoes and bulldozers to crush the stone from the pyramid so that they could use it to fill in a road.

Known as the Nohmul complex, the ceremonial pyramid was dated to about 2,300 years old.  It was considered the most important ancient site in Northern Belize.  The structure sat in the middle of a sugar can field.  While the pyramid lacked the typical stone sides that mark many pyramids, it was about one hundred feet tall and was well known in the region as a sacred site and ceremonial centre.

Jaime Awe, head of the Belize Institute of Archaeology said that they damage was discovered last week;

"It's a feeling of incredible disbelief because of the ignorance and the insensitivity...they were using this for road fill.  It's like being punched in the stomach, it's just so horrendous."

Pre-Hispanic ruins are under government protection in Belize wether they sit on private or public land.  Police are conducting an investigation of the incident and criminal charges may be filed. 

Awe believes the incident was a result of lazy workers who didn't want to quarry for the needed rock.

"To think that today we have modern equipment, that you can go and excavate in a quarry anywhere, but that this company would completely disregard that and completely destroyed this building.  Why can't these people just go and quarry somewhere that has no cultural significance?  It's mind boggling."

Belize has hundreds of Mayan ruins, many of them covered by jungle.  Sadly, this is not the first time such destruction of an ancient site has taken place in Belize and other countries in the region.

According to Professor Francisco Estrada-Beli of Tulane University;

"I don't think I'm exaggerating if I say that every day a Maya mound is being destroyed for construction in one of the countries were the Maya lived.  Unfortunately, this destruction of our heritage is irreversible but many don't take it seriously.  The only way to stop it is by showing that it is a major crime and people can and will go to jail for it."

Nazca Lines Damaged

Peruvian news daily, El Comercio, has reported damage to a group of lines on the Nazaca plateau.
According to the daily, heavy machinery owned by a firm removing limestone from the area is responsible for the damage.  The company claims that the plant is on private property and that the owners have a right to carry out their operations.
Eduardo Herran Gomez de la Torre, director of research at Ojos de Condor says the damage in the area is extensive:  "We have witnessed the irreparable destruction to a set of lines and trapezoids that existed in the area."
Commenting on the company's claims of land rights, Herran was quoted as saying: "The limestone firm responsible has not been sanctioned or supervised by the authorities of the Regional Directorate of Culture of Ica, despite being in this great archeological reserve."

The Nazca lines consist of hundreds of geometric shapes and simple lines.  The lines also contain over seventy zoomorphic shapes of creatures including, spiders, hummingbirds, lizards, fish and even a monkey.  The largest of the shapes is over 660 feet across.  The lines were created by removing the reddish pebbles from the land's surface, revealing the light gray dirt below.  
The lines are located on an arid, coastal plain south of Lima, Peru.  The plateau stretches more than fifty miles between the towns of Nazca and Palpa.  Much controversy surrounds the origins and purpose of the Nazca lines.  Some scientist believe the lines are related to water rituals, or perhaps, as directional lines to indicate water sources.  Other theories propose that the lines are a form of Archeoastronomy used to track astronomical movements in ancient times.

Nazca was made famous in the field of Ancient Astronaut studies by researcher Erich Von Daniken, author of Chariots of the Gods.  Von Daniken suggested that the lines were a result of technology beyond the scope of the native peoples of the region.  He postulated that the lines were actually some type of "ancient runway", visible from space and created as a guide for extraterrestrial visitors.

The Nazca lines were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994.  They have been under threat for some time and face major conservation challenges.  In 2012, they were added to the World Monuments Fund's watch list of cultural heritage sites at risk.  The lines face danger from looters, mining operations, unregulated tourism and even changing weather patterns.  They are considered an important site to the world as well as a significant tourist destination.  The government of Peru has had a difficult time keeping the site safe and it is clear that new steps must be taken to preserve this valuable, historical location.

The Mayans & 2012

Are we mere weeks away from the end of the world?
For the past few years, the mass media has helped promote the fear surrounding the end of the Mayan calendar.  December 21, 2012 we are told, is doomsday.  The last day of the Mayan calendar and the supposed destruction of the earth.  Countless movies have shown us dramatic displays of the destruction but there's much debate as to the form it will take.  Massive earthquakes, volcanoes and tidal waves are all thrown in the mix.  Some new age groups believe that a pole shift will occur
with the north and south poles suddenly trading their positions, wiping us all from existence.

Our planet has faced doomsday, or rather doomsday predictions, on numerous occasions.  There was mass panic at the end of the first millennium A.D.  The year 999 turned out to be quite a prosperous one for churches and monasteries as people donated all of their earthly wealth, hoping for a chance at salvation before the end came with the dawn of the year 1000.  There have been other end points predicted too.  The year 1524 was supposed to bring a great flood that would end the world on February 20th.  This prediction was based on a conjunction of the planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.  Alas, there was only a bit of rain here and there.
We've had modern scares of the end too.  The year 1999 saw a rise in Armageddon fever.  It seemed that the year 2000 was scheduled to bring about a great cyber collapse.  Better known as Y2K, the dawn of 2000 was supposed to usher in the total downfall of all technology throwing us back to the stone age.  Yet, here we are in 2012 and every teenager in sight has a cell phone in hand.

The biggest question that should be asked about the end of the Mayan calendar is, what do the Mayans themselves say?

There are a lot of mysteries surrounding the Mayan civilization but they are certainly not extinct as some people believe.  I've had the honor of meeting Mayan elders on some of my travels.  Years ago when I spoke with them, they considered the whole idea absurd. 

"It's only the end of a cycle, not the end of the world" one elder told me.  The Mayans were very advance in the art of time keeping and were able to track cycles well into the future.  The December date marks the end of a cycle in the Mayan long count calendar. 

"We see this not as an ending, but as a transition time.  It is a chance for all of us to change how we chose to conduct ourselves, to change what isn't working and to live in a better way.  There will be some turmoil yes, but sometimes that is needed to help people wake up and take notice that things must change."
Despite the Mayans long battle against the doomsday myth, the government of Guatemala seems to prefer the end of the world scenario.  In fact, this December, Guatemala's Ministry of Culture is hosting a massive event in Guatemala city.  The gathering is being promoted as a 'doomsday' celebration and the country expects close to 100,000 attendees.  Apparently, the government is hoping to profit from the end of the world.
An alliance of traditional Mayans called Oxlaljuj Ajpop plans to hold scared events in five cities to counter the government sponsored doomsday party.  The group's leader, Felipe Gomez states, "We are speaking out against deceit, lies and twisting of the truth, and turning us into folklore-for-profit.  They are not telling the truth about time cycles."
There will of course be changes.  We've been seeing these on a global scale for the past few years and it should be clear to everyone by now that we simply must transform how we conduct ourselves on this planet.  The Mayans believe that the end of this cycle brings with it the opportunity to re-evaluate ourselves and our society.  Yes, there's war, chaos and strife all around us but we don't have to accept it as our permanent reality.  If we take the Mayan lessons to heart and work together for a more positive future, there is nothing that we can't accomplish. 

If you prefer to hold to the belief that the world is about to end and want to dump all of your money, well, feel free to send it my way, I'm not a church but I'll be sure it's put to good use.  Otherwise, let's all focus on a positive, spiritual world as we enter 2013.

Are the Pyramids in Danger?

The Pyramids of Egypt are some of the most recognized monuments in the world.  They are surrounded in mystery and have been the source of countless theories regarding their construction and purpose.

But are these iconic structures now in danger of being destroyed?

The Pyramid fields from Giza to Dahshur are listed as a World Heritage site, but despite their historical significance and importance, some Islamic leaders are now calling for their destruction.
An Egyptian jihadist with self-professed connections to the terrorist Taliban is calling for the destruction of the Sphinx and the pyramids of Giza.  Appearing on Egyptian television, Murgan Salem al-Gohary has urged Muslims to "destroy the idols" referring to the pyramids, sphinx and other ancient structures.
He stressed during the interview, "All Muslims are charged with applying the teachings of Islam to remove such idols, as we did in Afghanistan when we destroyed the Buddha statues."  He further stated, "God ordered Prophet Mohammed to destroy idols, when I was with the Taliban we destroyed the statue of Buddha, something the government failed to do.”
Murgan Salem al-Gohary is referring to the destruction of two thousand year old Buddhist statues in Afghanistan in 2001 when the Taliban were in control of the country.
It was only after the fall of Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak in 2011 that al-Gohary was released from prison.  Since then, he has, along with other conservative Islamists, been a proponent of the strict application of Sharia law in the country's new constitution.
Other radicals have also called for the destruction of Egypt's monuments.  The "Sheikh of Sunni Sheikhs" Abd al-latif al-Mahmoud has urged Egypt's new president, Muhammad Morsi, to "destroy the Pyramids".

While some radicals call for the destruction of what they call "symbols of paganism" many Muslims have a more reasonable view.  They point out that the Sphinx and the pyramids are not worshiped as idols.  The ultra-conservative Salafi Muslims however, hold a more extreme view.  The Salafi Muslims follow conservative principles and they view all statues and sculptures as objects prohibited by Islam.  Recent parliamentary elections in Egypt have seen the Salafis gain more political power in the country.

It's hard for westerners to conceive of the idea of tearing down the pyramids, but time will tell how the current Egyptian government will deal with the political pressure to do so.  Most people hope that the new president, Mohammed Mursi, will help preserve the monuments and cultural heritage of the country.

The Egyptian government has recently announced that it will reveal more of its ancient treasures including the tomb of Queen Meresankh III, the granddaughter of Khufu as well as the underground Serapeum temple at Sakkara.