Customer Reviews

FRACTAL TIME The Secret of 2012 and a New world Age

5 star:		(45)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

This is the best of the 9 books on 2012 I have read. It draws from a number of sources, and leaves you in absolute awe, realizing there can be no doubt that the world as we know it will soon be very different. Gregg cites from a wide variety of countries and cultures that have pinpointed this time: India, China, Tibet, as well as the Aztecs, Mayans, Hopis, and even the Bible Code.

Gregg takes on the conventional idea of global warming being a function of air pollution, showing that the warming and melting of the ice caps is simply a part of the cycle. He discusses the Hindu tradition of "the day of Brahman" and the "night of Brahman" and shows how these cycles are actually backed by science.

I had heard before different ideas about time being "the fourth dimension" and "motion in space" but Gregg's layman explanation bumped up my understanding of the time/space continuum considerably. I now feel I have a deeper understanding of time and how it moves in spiral cycles which create a tendency or energy potential for certain events. As an amateur astrologer who has been able to predict critical events for friends, I always warned them that the energy is coming their way and what they do with it is up to them. Gregg shares that view in this book, showing us that the cycles are not destiny--but rather opportunities.

The best part of the book is chapter 5 in which the code is given to predict your own future and understand your past, based on cycles. I was in such a hurry to learn this that I tried to do it before finishing the chapter and got confused about the process. I was wondering, why isn't this working? I could not see any significant patterns at all. Then after reading the chapter and getting more clear on the instructions, I did it again. I was amazed to find that it worked with near 100% accuracy in various issues of my life, such as an eating disorder with its various stages of healing, my spiritual life, and my parents' divorce followed by loss and betrayal in relationships.

But there is also a code for deciphering world events, and Gregg gives several examples as well as the method for calculation. (By the way he has calculators on his web site if you don't care to learn the process of these cycles.)

If you really want to prepare for 2012, this is a must-read. Unlike many of the books out there, this is a book of hope with a vision of possibilities. According to Gregg, this is a once-in-26,000 year opportunity! We have the power within our hearts to make it heaven on earth. He cites science for all this; it is not merely some new age theory!

If you want to see a great treatment of the author's approach check out this You Tube video 'Gregg Braden Debunked'

My main concern with this book is that the author jumps on the coat tails of others and presents their information as his own and during the acquisition many times does not deliver an accurate message. My concerns are with his content, delivery, and his presumptive authority on the subjects he is discussing.

Writers such as Joe (aka Jose) Arguelles pointed out that time was fractal back in 1987 in 'The Mayan Factor'. Frank Waters in Mexico 'Mystique: Coming 6Th World Of Consciousness' wrote about Mayan time cycles in 1975. The Maya, by Michael Coe appeared in first edition in 1966. Terrence McKenna pointed out time is fractal with his TimeWave theory. Tony Shearer was also an early source.

The Olmec or Mayan or whoever invented the long count calendar are the ONLY ones who really understand what it is talking about. Non-Mayan speakers on a Mayan subject most often walk on thin ice or speak nonsense as often occurs in archeological circles. Regarding calendars there are also other cyclical calenderic systems from many cultures including the Chinese and their famous animal-oriented zodiac.

Example: "In addition to the 2012 winter solstice marking the end of the Mayan Great Cycle, December 21 also signals the completion of an even larger cycle: the great or precessional year that began approximately 260000 years ago."

The existence, length, and timing of the precessional year is a subject of great debate. The book is trying to say that December 21 2012 also represents the end of the cycle and the dawning of the age of Aquarius. However, no one knows in what year such a theoretical transition occurs let alone the day. According to Max Hiedel this transition to Aquarius occurred back in 498 AD. Based on other correlations it will not happen until 600 years from now. And the book does not tell you that it stole, I mean got, the idea of 2012 corresponding to age precession from John Major Jenkins which doesn't make it fact either. In fact the book lifted much of JMJs work in Galactic Alignment for this book. Anthony F. Aveni is a great authority to balance all of the 2012 hype.)

Additionally, although our Gregorian year starts in January, the Zodiacal year begins with Aries in April. How can the book select the ending of the Piscean cycle with the ending of the great year of precession?. Indeed Vera W. Reid in 'Towards Aquarius' (1968) makes is clear that a cycle is a CYCLE, it has no beginning or ending, it just is. The book introduces the *concept* of the ending of a year of precession (and *when*) with absolutely nothing to back it up.

The books statement about Dec 21 2012 'ending' a cycle of the great calendar of precession, and many other parts of this book, is straight from John Major Jenkins in Galactic Alignment. Many times when concepts are lifted from others there is not adequate credit. And with so much lifting you wonder what is the unique message of the book.

The book also has difficulty when it attempts to borrow JMJs ideas and use the Vedic time periods of Yugas and correlate then to *fit* the Mayan calendar. There is an extremely wide set of interpretations of how long each Yuga is. Even the Kali Yuga alone has many different interpretations to it's duration from approximately 5000 years long to 432,000 years long. The book also says that the level of our consciousness has to do with how close we are to the center of the galaxy. This is clearly a silly flub as our solar system is way out in the edge of the Milky Way. What he meant to say is that consciousness may be affected by our (earth's) relative [vertical] position to the galactic ecliptic. However, even that's a stretch. So this is just one example of how you have to keep filter what he is saying.

We are talking about metaphysics here and the more concrete you try to be with your statements the more error prone you will be. The domain does not fit tight conceptual models. It is clear that the book is forcefully folding and fitting in different concepts that do not belong together. He attempts to do this through a combination of fluffy language and just plain wrong conveyance of facts.

Most of this book is pretty beginner material and folks who have been around the block will find it sparse with little to offer. It rides heavily on the coat tales of others without due reference. If you like it fluffy and to be told they way things are instead of digging yourself for the facts and realizations then please enjoy it.

If you want some solid information on Fractal Time you should stick to McKenna, Shearer, and Joe Arguelles (with strong filters at Dreamspell which is nonsense).

If you want better, much more accurate information, around 2012 and the Maya then go to the original works that the book is copying. Your first and top pick should be John Major Jenkins (Galactic Alignment). Carl Calleman also has an interesting book (The Mayan Calendar and the Transformation of Consciousness). But beware, Callemans' book is a wide mix of concepts and he loosely passes off as Mayan things that are not clearly so. Calleman also believes that Sri Kalki Bhagavan is the Kalki Avatar and that Europe, specifically his beloved Sweden, is the center of earth's energetic pulses that guide evolution.

P.S. The author is even more 'interesting' in live spoken word. Go listen to the C2C interview with the author on Mar 17 2009.

The author claimed that scientists have found that the center of the Milky Way is a source of tremendous energy and that scientists by studying ice cores can prove when we are close to or far away from this source at the center of the Milky Way (or 'Cyclic-tilting' as he alternately called it). It seems like he is distorting the findings of Paul LaViolette in this statement. He also referred to a study in the Journal Nature which had nothing to do with his claims (I think he was confusing a study of disc-accretion with the point he was trying to make.)

He also claimed that the star purportedly next to the black hole at the center of the Milky Way (the only galaxy by the way that has a black hole and a massive star next to it) is 'the' brightest one in the galaxy. Current thinking gives that title to the Peony nebula star. There are the remains of a massive star cluster near the massive black hole but there is no single companion massive star next to it. In fact the most massive stars known just now are in star cluster NGC 3603 in the Milky Way.

Regarding the Dendera Zodiac he claims there is an 'inordinate' amount of space between Pisces and Aquarius ('precisely where we are now'). Go look at an image of it. Mazzoroth has a large one you can read. There is no unusual gap between the two signs. He also said there is 'a mysterious document encoded on that stone called The Program of Destiny' which links to a Sumerian text. Someone needs to update google to find any matches of 'The Program of Destiny' to Dendera. Actually the author is referring to a statement made by John Lash ('the programmes of destiny') documented by Colin Wilson in Atlantis Blueprint. I think the author means the Sumerian 'Tablet of Destiny'. [...].

I could go on with these examples. But I hope you get my point.

Mr. Braden has cobbled together a bunch of different (though interesting)ideas and attempted to link them mathematically, and he has failed at this abysmally.

Try building a spreadsheet off this man's math... I knew I was in trouble when I encountered the chart on 209-210 which gave the incorrect decimal equivalents for the months (December, for example, should fall in the range of .918 to .999, not .12). Then, the step-by-step examples he gives alternate between accurate to the day, to the month, or to the year. If you are going to apply math, you must be consistent. Use 5125.975 for December 21, 2012, NOT the rounded 5125. Converting dates accurately to three digits, December 7, 1941 is 5054.936, giving a next cycle date of March 25, 1985, a full year after Braden's calculations (March 1984) and a year and a half after the destruction of KAL Flight 007. This is not accurate enough to be useful. Further, he calculates his NEXT cycle off his manufactured date of March 1984 rather than using the actual date of the KAL Flight 007 crisis. We used an actual date for Pearl Harbor in the beginning, so why not this time? And if everything is cyclical, then the Pearl Harbor date is an estimation of some crisis years before it...

The whole Time Code Calculator makes a number of assumptions that are not reasonable. First, all calculations are based off an end of time on the winter solstice 2012. Different Mayan calendar experts suggest a variety of possible dates in this vicinity, but as the Mayan calendar was not based on 365.25 days, it is really impossible to pinpoint (as is the start of the calendar, which many put at 3115 BC, not 3113). Second, the choice of phi as a ratio seems completely arbitrary. Again, I point you to other Mayan calendar experts (Ian Lundgren, for example) who have broken the Mayan calendar into nine stages, going back to 16.4 billion years ago, with each stage being 1/20 the length of the stage prior, offering a different cycle ratio. Third, to use this formula for predicting crisis conditions or any other types of conditions, it means those conditions will keep repeating closer and closer together, until, as we near the end of time date, a new crisis (or love or abandonment or success) will be upon us every day.

By contrast, on p. 143, Braden applies the phi ratio to his age rather than to dates in his life, and the math results in a cycle that repeats exactly every 6.798 years. By this reasoning, someone who is molested at age four is going to encounter similar conditions every 2-1/2 years. Does this make sense to anyone?

I was very much looking forward to reading this as Braden has quite a reputation these days. What a major letdown. I don't like to give such a low score in a review, but sometimes the problems are just so glaringly obvious that I have to.

The basic premise to the book is that there are patterns to the flow of time and energy which the ancients knew and could use, an idea which I find quite interesting and agree with. I also feel quite strongly that these are critical times for the human race (and the planet), and was hoping to find something usable in this book as far as understanding these times is concerned.

Frankly, Braden falls flat. He states on page 17 that this book is not a science publication or peer-reviewed research paper. He states, however that it is well researched and documented. I must take issue with that, as he makes numerous major mistakes critical to the work. He also quite often "invokes" a source rather than using it to properly develop his point. (Read Joseph Farrell's books for an example of how to do this right.)

First off, I have major issues with taking the New Age pop garbage about Nostradamus seriously. Most of the people who write popular books about old Nostie do not bother to research his original writings or correct historical data, and many of the books about him, including those written hundreds of years ago, contain numerous factual errors. To make the (absolute) statement that Nostradamus "predicted" such things as the World Wars, the JFK assassination, and 9-11 is an outrageous distortion of fact, to put it in the kindest terms.

Nostradamus was a mediocre healer, a lousy astrologer (couldn't do the math, which is not easy), and his reputation for "predicting" things was mostly luck and a certain cleverness for duping the aristocracy (not a bad thing, in itself). His reputation was built mostly after his death by several authors, some of whom knew little about his real life (kind of like the news today). Most of the modern books about him rely on these works, poor translations of his French quatrains, and a lot of "wishful thinking."

Some facts: Nostradamus made it a point several times of clearly stating that he was not predicting anything. And he was never under any duress from the Church or society, quite the opposite in fact, so the idea that he needed to "hide" his predictions in obscure language is in error. Strike one.

He did not date the quatrains, so any attempt to make them fit into historical dates is a post hoc interpretation and subject to many errors. The idea that he predicted World War 2 comes from his use of the word "hister," which some people are inclined to think points to Hilter. It actually points to an area of the Danube river, which was called "hister" in Nostie's time. It does not refer to a person at all. Strike two.

The idea that he predicted the deaths of the Kennedys comes from his mention of two brothers in power being killed. Well, given the number of brothers who have been in power (and been killed) in the last 400 years, claiming that he meant the Kennedys is also ludicrous. Strike three.

But enough about Nostradamus. What about Braden's special math formula for figuring out these secret time/energy flow patterns? Well, he does eventually get to the point of giving the reader the formula, and that process is a big disappointment. The idea that one could predict the 9-11 attacks based on a cycle starting with Pearl Harbor is clearly NOT supported by his work. In fact, he claims that hitting the month of March in 2001 as the "window" for the 9-11 event is ridiculous. His attempt to make it fit the facts is to say that the planning for 9-11 probably happened in March of 2001, which is factually incorrect, not to mention a textbook case of making the data fit the hypothesis (junk science, in other words).

His list of presidential assassinations and attempts also fails to mention the attempt on Gerald Ford, which would trash his pattern. There are probably more such attempts that we don't know about as well. Sorry, again it just doesn't fit the actual data.

His attempt to paint modern storms and natural disasters as being worse by citing lives lost and dollar amounts of damage is absurd. One doesn't measure the force of such things that way - one uses wind speed and other such empirical measures of the force involved. Obviously, with a larger, denser world population, an earthquake, tsunami, or hurricane will kill more people. That doesn't make it more powerful. In fact, weaker storms can actually be more deadly in such a case, so that whole idea is just plain wrong. Bad logic.

Braden also goes on and on about Einstein, ignoring historical facts and the genius of many other, far better, scientists, like Tesla, Whittaker, and Poincare.

I find his ideas intriguing and interesting, but he simply hits so far from the mark that I think he does more harm than good. (Perhaps that is his agenda - disinformation.)

In any case, if you think you will find any worthwhile information or techniques here, you will be sorely disappointed. Don't waste your money. Try Carl Munck instead.

Several others have already quite eloquently pointed out mathematical errors in the Time Code Formula and errors dealing with Nostradamus so I won't go there. I would like to point out many scientific errors the author has made.

However, in reference to Nostradamus, why are his aimless rantings never used to predict what will actually happen in the future, rather than forecasting what has already occurred in the past? In other word, why are all his `predictions" made after the fact? Why were his quatrains not used to predict 9/11 before the event?

On page 37, the author makes note of a "deluge that is believed to have been the Biblical Flood". There is ample geological evidence that localized flooding has occurred over parts of the Earth in the past and continues to occur today, but certainly no evidence of a world wide deluge as reported in the Bible and this book. The quantity of water needed and where it came from and where it went has been covered in detail in other writings. No need to repeat what others have detailed, only to say that no scientific evidence exists for a world wide flood.

Page 38: the zodiac. Twelve constellations in the zodiac? Actually, No!!! Thirteen (Ophiuchus) or more (up to 24) constellations actually make up the zodiac ([...]). And even if twelve constellations make up the zodiac, the constellations are not evenly distributed (they are not the same size - look at tiny cancer and the much larger Taurus) and do not each cover 30 degrees. The Earth does not spend the same period of time in each zodiac sign.

P 50: The estimated age of the Earth is 4.7 billion years, not the 4.5 billion as stated by the author. But then, what's 200 million years. The Brahma age of the Earth (given as 4,320,000,000 years) is off by almost 450 million years, hardly close.

P 73: ".. cross the threshold of the Milky Way's equator in the 2012 timeframe ...". Does the solar system bob up and down through the Milky Way? Yes, on a cycle that lasts some 60 million years. It is almost impossible to say the sun and Earth will cross the galactic plane on Dec 21, 2012 as stated. Science doesn't have the exact position of the solar system mapped in the galaxy accurately enough to make that assessment. And even if the Earth did cross at that exact time, it has done so, many times in the past with no apparent ill effects.

p 90: In reference to the Great Pyramid, it is stated that it is located at the "geographic center of the land mass of the planet". I'm not sure what that means, but it looks to me (if I interpret this correctly) as if the center would be considerably further north, across the Asian land mass. Regardless, accepting that, earlier in that same paragraph, the author states,"The pyramid's height is 5449 inches, the same number as the average height of the Earth's land mass above sea level". First of all, that is really a strange unit of measure, why 5449 inches, why not its equivalent of 454.08 feet. The USGS (United States Geological Society) states that the average elevation of the land mass above sea level is about .6 miles or about 3200 feet. Now, who ya gonna believe???

On page 102 is where the author clearly shows total lack of knowledge on something so elementary as his usage of negative exponents. He used two negative exponent numbers in two totally different ways, neither of them correct.

p 102: an attosecond, one-quintillionth of a second IS NOT 1 followed by 18 zeros as the author states. One followed by 18 zero seconds would be equivalent to about 32 billion years (31.69 billion). One attosecond is a decimal point followed by 17 zeros then the number 1, as in .000000000000000001.

p 102: Planck TIme ( 10 to the -43 power) IS NOT "minus 10 with 43 zeros after it". That would be a HUGE negative number and not Planck Time which is a VERY VERY small decimal number. Planck TIme is a decimal point followed by 42 zeros then the number one as in .0000000000000000000000000000000000000000001 and it is not a negative value.

Let me try to show how totally wrong the author is in these two assessments of negative exponents. Let's assume your bank sent you a bank statement stating that your current checking account balance was 1 x 10 to the negative second dollars (Amazon won't allow me to use actual exponential notation with a -2 superscript). I know the bank wouldn't give your balance in this way, just bear with me and humor me. In the first case, the author would assume his balance was 100 dollars. In the second case he would assume a balance of -1000 dollars or 1000 dollars in the hole) In reality, the bank balance would be 1 cent or .01 dollars.

p 106: ".. is that energy appears to be moving away from one place in the center of the universe." There is no center to the universe. The Big Bang created the universe and the space that the universe is expanding into (as the universe expands the space is created), but there is no center to the universe.

p 109: "The spiral vortex that drains water in our sink one direction in the Northern Hemisphere and the opposite way in the Southern Hemisphere". Totally wrong. Just a myth. Is there a Corollas Effect? Most assuredly for large fluid systems (air or water), but not for small systems such as a sink, bathtub or toilet. It is how water flows into the sink, etc., that determines how it will flow out. Is the faucet off center just a bit, or is there some obstruction in the faucet, is the bowl perfectly symmetrical? Water does not drain in the opposite direction in the southern hemisphere. Countless scientific web sites verify this.

Considering everything, the Time Code Formula errors, the reliance on astrology and the nonsense of Nostradamus, and his errors in basic science I would rate this book as much less than one star. Further more, how can an ancient Mayan civilization "know" what the future holds. I'm not saying they were stupid or ignorant just that they didn't have the ability or means to accomplish all the author is giving them credit for.

FRACTAL TIME is Braden's most brilliant work to date. Gregg helps us in understanding our current time in history,the great cycles of the universe and the rich possibilities that are encoded in the returning patterns of our lives-Fractals.He presents to us a beautiful map pointing to perhaps the greatest choice point, personally and collectively, for world peace and healing.This is a masterful contribution filled with wisdom,science,hope-a grounded, powerful message for our time that is much needed and appreciated in a world of seeming uncertainty.A must to navigate the mysteries and facts of 2012 and beyond.

I really enjoy this author's works. In this case, he takes a subject around which there is so much trepidation and not a little 'fear' and he invites you to explore, sharing his knowledge, experiences and research with the reader, alternate possibilities that makes one want to stick around to see how the future will unfold. As an added benefit, he empowers one to take control of one's own life, by offering the idea that s/he can actually change the outcomes of 'repeating uncomfortable situations' in one's life, into more fulfilling and positive ones. Expand that thought process, apply globally and just imagine! the possibilities! I highly recommend this work.

This book is destined to become Gregg Braden's classic work. In this time of such obvious global change, Gregg gives us the tools to grasp the cycles that are playing out and the wisdom to understand the vital role each one of us plays. The time code calculator I found fascinating, the observations from a scientist enlightening and the uplifting view of 2012 a true gift from a great teacher.

In this optimistic book, author Greg Braden utilizes his technological background and spiritual outlook to create a book that gives us important insights into the years ahead, with special focus on 2012. Based on his research, the author has pinpointed "opportunity windows" for positive change in past, present and future transitional cycles and he shows us how these windows can be activated.

This well-written book is a metaphysical approach to futurism/ forecasting and quantum physics. For Greg Braden fans, this book will delight. For the rest, this book will surprise you. I believe this is his best book in terms of research and presentation. All the dots seem to connect as the author lays out his conclusions based on extensive research.

If you, like many of us, have concerns about 2012, read this book. I think you'll enjoy it !

Gregg Braden has an uncanny ability to synthesize a motley of seemingly unrelated ideas, into a self-contained and coherent whole, which is simultaneously comprehensive to the interested layman, with an interest in being updated and well-informed. In this book, he ventures further into realms that have only been covered by extremely speculative scientific research. Yet, the conclusions to which he arrives, can serve as a clear pointer to the direction humanity is to take, in order to survive the imminent transition expected in Dec.2012.

Gregg Braden begins by introducing an unusual concept of Time, according to which, time intervals are measured as gaps between events. This is in clear contrast to the Newtonian concept of Time as a unidirectional, free flowing river, unaffected by outward events. He notes, (without explaining why), that events in time, occur in cycles, in a pattern that repeats at different time scales. This is how the concept of a time fractal comes into play, (a fractal is defined as a repeating pattern at different scales). He also introduces the notion of a sacred ratio in order to estimate the periodicity of these cycles. And finally, he shows how these time-cycles can be used to provide answers: from our own life questions, to matters involving global milieus, and even further. The author also gives specific instructions as to how we can calculate our own cycles and find answers relevant to our own personal situations, and also when circumstances conducive to a desired event would materialize.

Gregg Braden substantiates his claims with several concrete examples, starting from his personal life, going on to times of severe political turmoil (World Wars I and II, and the stock market financial crises of today and the past), and ending with upheavals at the planetary level which have ended in the fall of entire civilisations. Earth and climate changes are also matters that are discussed in some detail.

Gregg Braden concludes by taking up the 2012 conundrum, presenting it as a matter of individual choice as to the way we wish to experience the change. He shows that at this time of incredible conflict and environmental damage, we, as a species can still come together in collective harmony, to stave off the worst of the expected disaster to the planet. He also mentions an activist group called the Global Coherence Organization, with which he himself is associated, that is active in this connection.

This is a book with a message. A powerful one. For once, ponderous, scientific analysis has been thrown to the winds. The way has been paved for a system that 'works', never mind why! One instance of this, is the golden ratio of 0.618....which comes up in various contexts. All artists know about this ratio; yet why does it appear so often?Where does it come from?

This book has been written for the right-brained reader. One who likes to see the way Nature moves and prefers to flow along. A person who is not overly preoccupied with the specifics of left-brained accuracy, preferring the fun of a roller coaster ride. So, if you want to dissect the scientific validity of this material before you accept any of it, my advice would be, DON'T, you'll be badly disappointed. In this book, you get to see the big picture, the 'forest', despite the 'trees'.

Strongly recommended.