From the interest generated across the globe, it seems the subject of
Armageddon is of interest to people of faith and no faith. This could be
indicative of something deeper in our psyche about how we view our planet and
the universe that it exists in. It implies that we see our planet as finite,
with a beginning and an end, hence there is an expectation that the world will
come to an end at some point in the future.
Regardless of what the Mayans
said, many around the globe did subscribe to the popular version of the Mayan
prophecy to various degrees, and in places like Russia the figure was something
like 10% to 20% of the adult population. However, the sceptics will partly
blame the vodka! These believers are not some superstitious bunch living in
some remote corner of the world, where western science and technology has not
penetrated. Therefore, how does one explain this sort of behaviour in this
scientific age where people insist on tangible evidence as proof? This in turn raises the philosophical subject
of sources of knowledge. Is knowledge
entirely based on our sense perception? What about historical narratives which
cannot be verified by our senses?
It is not just prophecy, but the
fascination with the wider subject of supernatural phenomena is rife within the
western world, yet its philosophical outlook insists on tangible proof that can
be verified by the senses or at least justified by reason. This seems like a
contradiction or evidence of people subscribing to the view that knowledge has
many sources, apart from what is acquired through sense perception and modern
scientific investigation.
The sceptics regarding the Mayan
prophecy are of two types. The first category are the ones with an exclusively
materialistic outlook, who argue that such a phenomenon cannot be subjected to
scientific scrutiny unless it took place gradually showing various physical signs,
reported by scientists from all corners of the globe, as was depicted in the
Hollywood blockbusters like 2012, The Day After, Knowing etc. To date there are no clear physical signs of
an impending doomsday. Even weather forecasts cannot be predicted with 100%
accuracy!
The other category of sceptics of
the Mayan prophecy believes the world would end unexpectedly, which cannot be
prophesied to a specific date or year or even a decade or a century. They are
the religious faction, and they argue the cause will be a supernatural one. According to the Islamic teachings, only God
alone has this knowledge. People of other faiths, including Christians, also
hold a similar view.
To believe something like Armageddon will take place in the future at
some point, without any warning, is a matter of faith in the sources. But the
question is why should people of no faith subscribing to an empirical view of
the world embrace such an ancient prediction? Could it be that the human race
knows that our humble planet had a beginning, thus it will also have an end at
some point? In that case, is the whole episode of the beginning and the end of
human civilisation merely a coincidence, devoid of any purpose?
The notion of unexpected events is
not something unusual, we experience it every day; from natural disasters around
the globe to everyday experience in our lives, for example, there is daily news
of some individual being killed in an accident with no prior warnings. This
raises another philosophical point about how much control we have over our
lives. The unbelieving materialists assert that we are in full control, and
thus when a calamity befalls them, they continue to suffer from the “what if”
syndrome! If you had full control you would be able to foresee everything, and
human society would not suffer from such types of events. On the other hand,
many believers have become fatalists, subscribed to the idea that we have no
choice in shaping our destiny; everything is the will of God. The will of God
is not always coercive; clearly it was God’s will that has given us free will
to choose our actions, otherwise the notion of reward and punishment for our deeds
becomes meaningless.
Hence, the correct position lies
somewhere in between the misguided religious fatalists and the unbelieving
materialists, and according to the Islamic teachings, the middle path is the
best route.
Yamin Zakaria
(yamin@radicalviews.org)
Published on 31/12/2012
London, UK
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