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Fractal Time: The Secret of 2012 and a New World Age
In this fascinating book, Gregg Braden merges the modern discoveries of nature’s patterns (fractals) with the ancient view of a cyclic universe. The result is a powerful model of time—
fractal time
—and a realistic window into what we can expect for the mysterious year 2012 . . . and beyond.
Applying fractal time to the history of the world and life, he proposes that everything from the war and peace between nations to the patterns of human relationships mirror the returning cycles of our past. As each cycle repeats, it carries a more powerful, amplified version of itself.
The key: If you know where to look in the past, you know what to expect when the same conditions return in the present and future. For the first time in print, the Time Code Calculator gives us the tool to do just that! Through easy-to-understand science and step-by-step instructions, discover for yourself:
· How the conditions for 2012 have occurred in the past, and what we can expect when they repeat!
· The “hot dates” that hold the greatest threats of war, and the greatest opportunities for peace!
· How Earth’s location in space triggers cycles of spiritual growth for humans!
· Your personal time codes for the key events of business, relationships, and change in your life!
· How each cycle carries a window of opportunity— a choice point —that allows us to select a new outcome for the returning pattern!
· What the 1999 ice cores from Antarctica reveal about past cycles of climate, global warming, Earth’s protective magnetic fields, and what these things mean for us today!
In a powerful yet comprehensible style, Gregg gives us a way to make sense of the rapid, and often dramatic, change of today’s world. It is these understandings that guide us away from the destructive choices we’ve made in the past. They also show the way to the greatest possibilities of our lives. Gregg suggests that if we can see time from this perspective, the past reveals the great secret of our moment in history and what we can expect as we approach December 21, 2012!
Applying fractal time to the history of the world and life, he proposes that everything from the war and peace between nations to the patterns of human relationships mirror the returning cycles of our past. As each cycle repeats, it carries a more powerful, amplified version of itself.
The key: If you know where to look in the past, you know what to expect when the same conditions return in the present and future. For the first time in print, the Time Code Calculator gives us the tool to do just that! Through easy-to-understand science and step-by-step instructions, discover for yourself:
· How the conditions for 2012 have occurred in the past, and what we can expect when they repeat!
· The “hot dates” that hold the greatest threats of war, and the greatest opportunities for peace!
· How Earth’s location in space triggers cycles of spiritual growth for humans!
· Your personal time codes for the key events of business, relationships, and change in your life!
· How each cycle carries a window of opportunity— a choice point —that allows us to select a new outcome for the returning pattern!
· What the 1999 ice cores from Antarctica reveal about past cycles of climate, global warming, Earth’s protective magnetic fields, and what these things mean for us today!
In a powerful yet comprehensible style, Gregg gives us a way to make sense of the rapid, and often dramatic, change of today’s world. It is these understandings that guide us away from the destructive choices we’ve made in the past. They also show the way to the greatest possibilities of our lives. Gregg suggests that if we can see time from this perspective, the past reveals the great secret of our moment in history and what we can expect as we approach December 21, 2012!
256 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2009
149 people are currently reading
983 people want to read
About the author
Gregg Braden
130 books703 followersNew York Times best selling author Gregg Braden is internationally renowned as a pioneer in bridging science and spirituality. Following a successful career as a Computer Geologist for Phillips Petroleum during the 1970s energy crisis, he became a Senior Computer Systems Designer for Martin Marietta Defense Systems during the last year of the Cold War. In 1991 he was appointed the first Technical Operations Manager for Cisco Systems where he led the development of the global support team that assures the reliability of today’s Internet. For more than 22 years, Gregg has searched high mountain villages, remote monasteries, and forgotten texts to uncover their timeless secrets. To date, his work has led to such paradigm-shattering books as The Isaiah Effect, The God Code, The Divine Matrix and his 2008 release, The Spontaneous Healing of Belief: Shattering the Paradigm of False Limits. Gregg’s work is now published in 17 languages and 27 countries and shows us beyond any reasonable doubt that the key to our future lies in the wisdom of our past.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 81 reviews
November 12, 2009
Ok, so I realize that some people who know me think I'm "out there". To them this book will just add fuel to that fire. But to those who "know" and are in touch with their spiritual side, this book is a MUST read. The concepts and the scientific data are just overwhelming. I learned things about this planet and the past that I had never realized and felt sort of like Christopher Columbus discovering the New World. It is unsettling, shakes up your thinking. The book ties in with the End of Days which some believe and some not. I will count this as a "keeper" on my bookshelves. I was very impressed and am going to get his other books as I feel he is on to something. Something SO BIG it boggles the mind. You read it, and you be the judge.
November 23, 2012
A friend recommended this book as a must-read before the now infamous date of December 21, 2012, and I am glad that I did. Not only is Fractal Time an interesting read - it is an inspirational one.
Braden provides a well-researched, readable and fascinating blend of quantum physics, metaphysics, science, history and spirituality that explores the Mayan and other ancient cultures' study and concept of time in comparison to what modern-day technology is confirming.
What is being hyped as "the end of the world" on the 2012 Winter Solstice is actually the end of two cosmic cycles: 1) the end of the fifth world age, which began on August 11, 3114 BC and ends with the rare alignment of our solar system with the core of the Milky Way galaxy on December 21, 2012 [which last happened 26,000 years ago]; and 2) the end of a 25,625-year orbit of Earth through the 12 constellations of the zodiac. (page 199)
Ultimately, by understanding these cycles of time and the conditions they create, we can control our destinies and make smarter choices.
Matrix lovers may especially enjoy the chapter entitled "The Key to the Universe," which discusses Seth Lloyd's suggestion that "The universe is a quantum computer . . . As the computation proceeds, reality unfolds." Per Lloyd, "The history of the universe is, in effect, a huge and ongoing quantum computation." The chapter also gets into fractal patterns, the mystery of Phi and the space/time redux - including why time appears to flow in only one direction, even though:
". . . there's absolutely nothing in the laws of physics, at least as we know them today, that states that the egg [an egg which has fallen to the floor and broken into pieces] must remain broken forever. In fact, the physics suggest just the opposite: the principles that determine the flow of time in the universe are said to be symmetrical - that is, they can go in either direction." (page 106)
I especially enjoyed Braden's interjections of the Hopi tradition and perspective on time. As Braden explains, "the Hopi simply don't think of time, space, distance, and reality in the way we do. In their eyes, we live in a universe where everything is alive and connected. Perhaps most important, they see everything as happening "now." Their language mirrors their view. When we look at an ocean, for example, and see a wave, we would typically say, "Look at that wave." [even though in reality] the wave we're looking at doesn't exist alone." Whereas the Hopi's language would describe the ocean as "waving." The Hopi language describes quantum possibilities - allowing the future to be open to other possibilities and not be fixed.
The chapters following explore how history repeats itself, digging deeper into the cycles of time and its impact cosmically, globally and individually and the various predictions for 2012, not all of them pleasant (particularly the suggestion that the poles may flip-flop). I especially enjoyed the final chapter, "Choice Point 2012," where we again get insight to the Hopi's predictions of the fifth world age and "The Map of Choice." We are also introduced to the science of magnetic fields and how two geostationary operational environmental satellites (GOES) actually detected and proved a relationship between human emotion and global magnetism - "the human heart generating the strongest magnetic field in the body, nearly 5,000 times stronger than that of the brain."
Ultimately, Braden suggests that what happens on December 21, 2012 is largely up to us - if our minds are projecting reality, what reality do we wish to project? If the world is predicted to end, Will we change it? According to our ancestors, we absolutely can.
Braden provides a well-researched, readable and fascinating blend of quantum physics, metaphysics, science, history and spirituality that explores the Mayan and other ancient cultures' study and concept of time in comparison to what modern-day technology is confirming.
What is being hyped as "the end of the world" on the 2012 Winter Solstice is actually the end of two cosmic cycles: 1) the end of the fifth world age, which began on August 11, 3114 BC and ends with the rare alignment of our solar system with the core of the Milky Way galaxy on December 21, 2012 [which last happened 26,000 years ago]; and 2) the end of a 25,625-year orbit of Earth through the 12 constellations of the zodiac. (page 199)
Ultimately, by understanding these cycles of time and the conditions they create, we can control our destinies and make smarter choices.
Matrix lovers may especially enjoy the chapter entitled "The Key to the Universe," which discusses Seth Lloyd's suggestion that "The universe is a quantum computer . . . As the computation proceeds, reality unfolds." Per Lloyd, "The history of the universe is, in effect, a huge and ongoing quantum computation." The chapter also gets into fractal patterns, the mystery of Phi and the space/time redux - including why time appears to flow in only one direction, even though:
". . . there's absolutely nothing in the laws of physics, at least as we know them today, that states that the egg [an egg which has fallen to the floor and broken into pieces] must remain broken forever. In fact, the physics suggest just the opposite: the principles that determine the flow of time in the universe are said to be symmetrical - that is, they can go in either direction." (page 106)
I especially enjoyed Braden's interjections of the Hopi tradition and perspective on time. As Braden explains, "the Hopi simply don't think of time, space, distance, and reality in the way we do. In their eyes, we live in a universe where everything is alive and connected. Perhaps most important, they see everything as happening "now." Their language mirrors their view. When we look at an ocean, for example, and see a wave, we would typically say, "Look at that wave." [even though in reality] the wave we're looking at doesn't exist alone." Whereas the Hopi's language would describe the ocean as "waving." The Hopi language describes quantum possibilities - allowing the future to be open to other possibilities and not be fixed.
The chapters following explore how history repeats itself, digging deeper into the cycles of time and its impact cosmically, globally and individually and the various predictions for 2012, not all of them pleasant (particularly the suggestion that the poles may flip-flop). I especially enjoyed the final chapter, "Choice Point 2012," where we again get insight to the Hopi's predictions of the fifth world age and "The Map of Choice." We are also introduced to the science of magnetic fields and how two geostationary operational environmental satellites (GOES) actually detected and proved a relationship between human emotion and global magnetism - "the human heart generating the strongest magnetic field in the body, nearly 5,000 times stronger than that of the brain."
Ultimately, Braden suggests that what happens on December 21, 2012 is largely up to us - if our minds are projecting reality, what reality do we wish to project? If the world is predicted to end, Will we change it? According to our ancestors, we absolutely can.
June 5, 2022
Although there are a few interesting insights brought to light by Braden’s calculations, with my particular experience with philosophy, metaphysics and spirituality there isn’t a lot to gain from this book in a post 2012 age. I am sure there are many people who could have used it back then - to realize that the end was not particularly nigh. However, perhaps an individual not very far along in their journey of self-discovery could definitely benefit from a few discoveries in this book.
One particularly notable take is that throughout history the universe presents us with choice points. The choices we make individually and collectively at these key moments in time do determine the path we take. To ensure we stay on the right path we need to find our truth and live by that truth and resonate it with every ounce of our being to the rest of the world. Which brings us to a second important lesson of this tome: our emotions have real, measurable electromagnetic effects on the universe, time and everyone around us. The emotions, moods and intentions we project outward direct our path and affect others electromagnetically. Therefore, that resonance of our truth and love is necessary to raise the vibration of the ether.
One particularly notable take is that throughout history the universe presents us with choice points. The choices we make individually and collectively at these key moments in time do determine the path we take. To ensure we stay on the right path we need to find our truth and live by that truth and resonate it with every ounce of our being to the rest of the world. Which brings us to a second important lesson of this tome: our emotions have real, measurable electromagnetic effects on the universe, time and everyone around us. The emotions, moods and intentions we project outward direct our path and affect others electromagnetically. Therefore, that resonance of our truth and love is necessary to raise the vibration of the ether.
March 8, 2012
I immensely enjoyed Gregg Braden's exposure and exploitation of our past. The "higher-ups" would like to stammer and halt our "spiritual evolution" altogether. We must listen to our heart and retrieve deep spiritual wisdom deposits into our daily lives. The scientific community is a massive FAILURE to be frank. It starts by saying that this isn't a scientific research book. He says it is based on research and written for the layman. The earth-cycles section was amazing. The ancient civiliations that we now have evidence of that are much older than science and history taught us in our school years was eye opening. It was much more than I bargained for. I am studying and learning about the 2012 phenomena. I figured it can't be a bad idea. The 2012 Prediction holds more water than ALL other predictions, with thousands of years of Earth studies by our ancestors. Get to know it, before IT takes you by STORM!
August 19, 2009
I am learning so much from this amazing book. For instance, regarding our life now and how we interpret the potential 2012 prophecies it reads, "The way we feel about our experiences has a direct effect upon what we actually experience." We are in control of what we create in our lives now and in the future. I believe this deeply.
November 24, 2012
This masquerades as something profound, but the dubious mathematical reasoning and leaps of philosophical logic which it demands don't stand up to much scrutiny.
June 22, 2010
At first it would appear that this is just another doomsday, 'prepare for catastrophe', type of 2012 new age book.
But the truth is that this is a well-written, well-researched look into the new science of quantum physics and the nature of time itself.
Exploring the world of matter/energy at the sub-atomic level, Braden continues on to explain that time is cyclical, rather than linear, and certain 'events' within history contain within themselves the 'seeds' of repeating events.
We have all heard the truism that if you do not learn from history, you run the risk of repeating your mistakes, which applies to nations, governments and individuals themselves.
So with this thought in mind, and by using the knowledge that quantum physics is teaching us, Braden goes on to extrapolate certain 'possibilities' for 2012, the date the Mayan calendar ends.
But instead of doom and gloom, Braden explains that we have the power within ourselves to insure that 2012 will be a new beginning rather than an ending to life as we know it.
Give the book a chance to change your perception of how the world works and your co-creative part in it!
But the truth is that this is a well-written, well-researched look into the new science of quantum physics and the nature of time itself.
Exploring the world of matter/energy at the sub-atomic level, Braden continues on to explain that time is cyclical, rather than linear, and certain 'events' within history contain within themselves the 'seeds' of repeating events.
We have all heard the truism that if you do not learn from history, you run the risk of repeating your mistakes, which applies to nations, governments and individuals themselves.
So with this thought in mind, and by using the knowledge that quantum physics is teaching us, Braden goes on to extrapolate certain 'possibilities' for 2012, the date the Mayan calendar ends.
But instead of doom and gloom, Braden explains that we have the power within ourselves to insure that 2012 will be a new beginning rather than an ending to life as we know it.
Give the book a chance to change your perception of how the world works and your co-creative part in it!
September 5, 2011
This book had some interesting information about time but it was hard to follow and tried to blend things together that didn't go together so well. I did the fractal time in my life, but I still had questions. Like do things really repeat forever in your life, or can you work your way out of a repeating pattern? I personally think that you can change patterns. And is he saying you can't make any new patterns as an older person? So much has happened in my life, and I felt like I could force it and fit it into his idea of fractal patterns in my own life. But that doesn't mean it works. And how do you know if an event that you remember wasn't a reoccurrence already and then miscalculate the next occurrence. Astrology is more solid, trustworthy and useful than this particular formula if you are looking for patterns, I think. And as far as his idea about president assassinations being patterns, he only mentions the assassination attempts that happen to fit in his logarithm and doesn't explain all the other attempts that have happened over the years.
April 12, 2009
This book helped me see the upcoming date of 2012 in a much different light than most of what's out there. I had begun being afraid of what would come, seeing either cataclysm, or a semi-mass exodus from the planet by those who were ready to ascend. This author looks at writings from ancient civilizations, about the ending of the previous ages, and uses a simple math formula based on the golden ratio to project when and how things will change. I love the idea that this time of transformation is really our chance to re-envision the world in a more holistic way, and create a society that is more balanced and light-filled.
June 1, 2009
Interesting theory, but most of what the author has to say (of any substance) is covered in the introduction. He doesn't provide a lot of support for his ideas, and left me wondering why there wasn't more practical application of his theory. He touts the math as being the most important element, but then relegates the simple formula to the appendices, and gives little explanation of the relevance of the dates that he generates ... focusing on the "whoo-hoo" events and downplaying the "not much really happened this iteration" or "well, it would have happened, if people hadn't had the right kind of thoughts that averted the catastrophe."
January 15, 2026
Mielenkiintoinen aihe mutta kaiken kaikkiaan höttöinen esitys. Sen sijaan, että kirja yrittäisi selventää ja taustoittaa 5125-syklin merkitystä niin, että sen voisi erottaa epäkiinnostavasta informaatiomassasta, teksti käyttää sitä vain lähtökohtana paljon geneerisemmälle raamattukoodi-simulaatioteoria-akselin totuuspommien tiputtelulle joka syö pohjaa maailmanaikojen systemaattiselta käsittelyltä (tässäkään ei tarkoiteta kaikkea jonka voi mahdollisesti laittaa raamattukoodin alle vaan nimenomaisesti näitä jotka pohjaavat argumenttinsa lähinnä heprean monitulkintaisuuteen ja sitä kautta saavat toorasta irti "tilastollisesti merkittävämpiä" tuloksia kuin moby dickistä). Kirja sulaa huudahtelevaksi tapahtumien osoitteluksi vailla kunnollista analyysia tai kontekstia. Ajattelemattomuus näkyy esim. siinä että mehustellaan metrijärjestelmään perustuvien yksikköjen Fibonacci-suhteilla DNA:ssa jättäen selvittämättä kysymyksen: mikä on metri ja miten se liittyy luonnon rakenteisiin? Toki esimerkiksi 137-luvun rooli tieteessä, liittyen kultaiseen kulmaan, pyörimisliikkeeseen, ja orpouden konseptiin, on mielenkiintoinen sikäli kun Kabbalah on 137 gematrisesti: mutta tällä tasolla analyysi täytyy tarkasti erottaa luonnon fundamentaalisten rakenteiden, joihin totta kai liittyvät spiraalisuus ja pyörimisliikkeestä muodostuva lineaarisuus, ja mallien välillä, ottaen huomioon modernin astronomisen tieteen ja liberalismin aristokraattis-muurarisen konsolidaation väliset yhteydet. Salaisen teknologian doktriinin mukaisesti tätä järjestelmää täytyy yrittää purkaa koska se väistämättä peittää alleen todelliseet periatteet.
Tämä kaikki on tuskallista koska on mahdollista varmistaa että näillä asioilla on vahvoja vastaavuuksia (joita ei sovi paljastaa "koirille", raamatun ohjeiden mukaan) jotka osoittavat tietä totuuteen mutta kirja ei selventänyt 5125-syklin, 1/5 prekessiosyklistä, todellista merkitystä. Tällaisen myötä asiat on helppo redusoida "öhöhöh 2021 raamattu koodi" muotoon jotta voisi peittää oman eläimellis-mytologisen tottelevaisuutensa liberalismin luonnolaeille esittäen samalla, että tästä tilanteesta on johdettavissa ajtuksia tai sisältöä. Suosittelen jotain toista kirjaa yuga-konseptin ja muinaisen astronomian tutkimiselle (esim. Hamlet's Mill, joskaan se ei muistaakseni käsittele 5125-sykliö, tai Anacalypsis, joka on tosin hirvittävän vaikea teos mutta myös esimerkki siitä minkälaisille tasoille monet itsenäiset tutkijat pääsivät tuohon aikaan)
Tämä kaikki on tuskallista koska on mahdollista varmistaa että näillä asioilla on vahvoja vastaavuuksia (joita ei sovi paljastaa "koirille", raamatun ohjeiden mukaan) jotka osoittavat tietä totuuteen mutta kirja ei selventänyt 5125-syklin, 1/5 prekessiosyklistä, todellista merkitystä. Tällaisen myötä asiat on helppo redusoida "öhöhöh 2021 raamattu koodi" muotoon jotta voisi peittää oman eläimellis-mytologisen tottelevaisuutensa liberalismin luonnolaeille esittäen samalla, että tästä tilanteesta on johdettavissa ajtuksia tai sisältöä. Suosittelen jotain toista kirjaa yuga-konseptin ja muinaisen astronomian tutkimiselle (esim. Hamlet's Mill, joskaan se ei muistaakseni käsittele 5125-sykliö, tai Anacalypsis, joka on tosin hirvittävän vaikea teos mutta myös esimerkki siitä minkälaisille tasoille monet itsenäiset tutkijat pääsivät tuohon aikaan)
January 1, 2025
I read this when it was new in 2011, leading up to 2012. I feel the need to read this again suddenly but I felt I absorbed the main concepts — sometimes rereading over some parts more than others, as may be distracted and short memory is sabotaged by circumstances I’d be attempting to read — usually on my commute to central london to work in a computer dev agency. The ideas discussed are interesting - basically as the title suggest — time is not linear and it’s actually spiralled — fractal in nature. This has been influencing my thinking but I can only give the book four stars — the book is not exactly a conversation starter with most people … it’s the easiest of topics to get enthusiastic about to discuss with most people— to just start conversation about time not being linear might not be of interest, if they’re not interested in physics or general metaphysics philosophy.
Want to read
March 21, 2025Většina domněnek této knize vychází z poznatků minulých i současných ale nevytváří konzistentně rámec. Zajímalo by mě jestli autor svým knihám věří nebo je píše jen aby se nějak uživil. myslím si že to druhé. Znali a inteligentní člověk většinou těchto konceptu nepřijímá pokud nejsou podložená fakta analýzy. Kdo věří ten ví, kdo ví ten nevěří.
August 1, 2021
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Fascinating work. As always Braden doesn't disappoint. I have read it several times and have spent hours working with the calculations...amazing realizations have come from the work.
Fascinating work. As always Braden doesn't disappoint. I have read it several times and have spent hours working with the calculations...amazing realizations have come from the work.
July 26, 2023
A Great Read
Many questions and mysteries that I have pondered over the years are discussed and even answered. My mind was blown in some ways, and the author gave us an optimistic action plan. Fascinating!
Many questions and mysteries that I have pondered over the years are discussed and even answered. My mind was blown in some ways, and the author gave us an optimistic action plan. Fascinating!
September 25, 2017
Some interesting insights however starting to feel its date of publication and distance from what it was focusing on.
October 26, 2017
Fascinating to say the least! And it's got all the supporting evidence... I have immensely enjoyed this book.
April 22, 2019
Not the whole story, research is limited to too few "religions" to make this a balanced book. The science is also unsupported.
January 22, 2024
There is certainly something about this book which makes sense ( or should make sense to you ) deep down in our core being...
Because regardless whether we agree with the books contents entirely or not - ages of time and the various cycles they bring can indeed cause effects and recurring patterns which we can observe - such as the present day from things like financial markets, housing / real estate cycles like booms/crashes etc - but also interestingly by ancient prophecies and different religions that all amazingly point to similar themes which are indeed coming true and verifiable by historical and present day events...again following a pattern
....bottom line - there is more to the world and reality than we are conventionally led to believe and perceive ... and this book is a small peep down the rabbit hole in relevance to time only - yet no doubt there is so much more to it...
To Our Continued Success!
Seemy
Waseem.tv/Blog
👆🏼 P.S -
If you found this review helpful - I’d like to invite you to discover more on our blog. Where the community share some of our most important insights to level up each others knowledge 💡- from experience in studying books like this, training programs, podcasts and much more - visit the blog link above to find out more.
P.P.S 😅 - You probably noticed from my profile that I’ve reviewed a LOT of books over the years now - if you love seeking knowledge like me I’d love to connect with you further as a like minded person (send me a friend invite! 😀) - Also if you are curious - here is my preferred and recommended resource for seeking timeless wisdom - Check it out via the website invite link below 👇🏼 (You’ll be able to claim some awesome books for free 📚)
https://Waseem.tv/GoodReadsBookInvite
Because regardless whether we agree with the books contents entirely or not - ages of time and the various cycles they bring can indeed cause effects and recurring patterns which we can observe - such as the present day from things like financial markets, housing / real estate cycles like booms/crashes etc - but also interestingly by ancient prophecies and different religions that all amazingly point to similar themes which are indeed coming true and verifiable by historical and present day events...again following a pattern
....bottom line - there is more to the world and reality than we are conventionally led to believe and perceive ... and this book is a small peep down the rabbit hole in relevance to time only - yet no doubt there is so much more to it...
To Our Continued Success!
Seemy
Waseem.tv/Blog
👆🏼 P.S -
If you found this review helpful - I’d like to invite you to discover more on our blog. Where the community share some of our most important insights to level up each others knowledge 💡- from experience in studying books like this, training programs, podcasts and much more - visit the blog link above to find out more.
P.P.S 😅 - You probably noticed from my profile that I’ve reviewed a LOT of books over the years now - if you love seeking knowledge like me I’d love to connect with you further as a like minded person (send me a friend invite! 😀) - Also if you are curious - here is my preferred and recommended resource for seeking timeless wisdom - Check it out via the website invite link below 👇🏼 (You’ll be able to claim some awesome books for free 📚)
https://Waseem.tv/GoodReadsBookInvite
August 3, 2011
All Gregg Braden's books bear upon the larger scheme of things, esoteric messages encoded in ancient times, planetary themes such as the Shift, etc etc. This book is no exception.
It is divulged that we are rapidly approaching the end of a 5,125-year cycle of time, the end of a world age. This began in 3114 B.C. and will culminate in December 21, 2012.
Moreover, this cycle constitutes the last fifth of an even greater cycle (or world) describing "the precession of the equinoxes - our 25,625-year journey through the 12 constellations of the zodiac".
The date December 21, 2112 signifies the alignment of our Earth and the entire solar system with the "galaxy's equator" and "the heart of the Milky Way".
Braden defines "fractals" as "simple, self-similar, and repeating patterns" and it is his thesis that everything that happens in our universe occurs in repeating cycles.
This applies both to momentous world events and events in our personal lives. The appendices contain a simple method to calculate the reoccurrence of personal events or rather the reoccurrence of similar conditions in our lives to a particular seed event.
The momentous date in 2012 is not to be regarded as "the end of the world". What is occurring is not actually an event but an unfolding process. Just as life crises although seemingly horrendous actually present wonderful opportunities for growth, 2012 may prove to be the year where a global crisis forces mankind to transform to a new level of being, where we learn to allow heart-based decisions instead of those based on cold reason to take precedence.
It is divulged that we are rapidly approaching the end of a 5,125-year cycle of time, the end of a world age. This began in 3114 B.C. and will culminate in December 21, 2012.
Moreover, this cycle constitutes the last fifth of an even greater cycle (or world) describing "the precession of the equinoxes - our 25,625-year journey through the 12 constellations of the zodiac".
The date December 21, 2112 signifies the alignment of our Earth and the entire solar system with the "galaxy's equator" and "the heart of the Milky Way".
Braden defines "fractals" as "simple, self-similar, and repeating patterns" and it is his thesis that everything that happens in our universe occurs in repeating cycles.
This applies both to momentous world events and events in our personal lives. The appendices contain a simple method to calculate the reoccurrence of personal events or rather the reoccurrence of similar conditions in our lives to a particular seed event.
The momentous date in 2012 is not to be regarded as "the end of the world". What is occurring is not actually an event but an unfolding process. Just as life crises although seemingly horrendous actually present wonderful opportunities for growth, 2012 may prove to be the year where a global crisis forces mankind to transform to a new level of being, where we learn to allow heart-based decisions instead of those based on cold reason to take precedence.
January 5, 2014
Braden is definitely a man with a buzz. The book is premised on the observation that time is not linear but is composed of cycles many different sizes (e.g. days, years, etc) and that these cycles often build up to similar possibilities. He takes this observation that's obvious in the area of seasons and attempts to extend it down into the details of our lives and up to the march of our civilization, making the requisite caveat that this all speaks to potentialities but actual events are dependent on our choices. Ah, yes. It is destiny _and_ free will.
But, once he sets up the basic groundwork, things break down quickly. My original assumption was, given his buzz, that the 2012 splashed on the cover was the work of over-zealous marketing types. But, they're not entirely to blame. Braden (if Fractal time is typical of his work) seems to suffer from the same problems exhibited by too many books that are lumped under the "new age" rubric. He's very selective in use of evidence, doesn't discuss alternative interpretations of his evidence, blows past problems, doesn't fully understand the implications of the science he draws upon (e.g. fractals and chaos theory) and arrives at simplistic conclusions.
If you're looking for detailed list of problems with Fractal Time (and Braden in general), read the book's one-star ratings on Amazon.
If you're looking for solid books on Braden's topic, those one-star ratings also give at least a half-dozen other author recommendations.
But, once he sets up the basic groundwork, things break down quickly. My original assumption was, given his buzz, that the 2012 splashed on the cover was the work of over-zealous marketing types. But, they're not entirely to blame. Braden (if Fractal time is typical of his work) seems to suffer from the same problems exhibited by too many books that are lumped under the "new age" rubric. He's very selective in use of evidence, doesn't discuss alternative interpretations of his evidence, blows past problems, doesn't fully understand the implications of the science he draws upon (e.g. fractals and chaos theory) and arrives at simplistic conclusions.
If you're looking for detailed list of problems with Fractal Time (and Braden in general), read the book's one-star ratings on Amazon.
If you're looking for solid books on Braden's topic, those one-star ratings also give at least a half-dozen other author recommendations.
July 28, 2016
Time has passed since this book was a hot read. All about the end of time according to the Mayan calendar at the 2012 winter solstice, but then what? Time cycles and cycles within cycles explains many things in our individual lives. Why we meet the right people at the right time. In my case, individual prayer and interfaith prayer groups have become an important answer to social action and social justice issues in 2016.
Why does prayer work when so many "godless" leaders and leaders of thought write bestsellers and command big-buck speaking tours? All things are of God, and we all play our roles in creation of new worlds, and worlds within worlds.
Why 2012? I could make a case based on Baha'i Writings for 1843, 1863, or 2021 as the beginning and ending of millennial cycles, centuries, epochs, or eras. The recent National Geographic publication, "Sizing Up The Universe" provides a scientific view of Eternity beyond a wall of time in which billions of galaxies exist.
A friend who visited our home two weeks ago, mentioned "Fractal Time" as a must-read. I bought it the next day for $1 at our public library book sale fundraiser. It fits the theme of meeting the right people at the right time.
Why does prayer work when so many "godless" leaders and leaders of thought write bestsellers and command big-buck speaking tours? All things are of God, and we all play our roles in creation of new worlds, and worlds within worlds.
Why 2012? I could make a case based on Baha'i Writings for 1843, 1863, or 2021 as the beginning and ending of millennial cycles, centuries, epochs, or eras. The recent National Geographic publication, "Sizing Up The Universe" provides a scientific view of Eternity beyond a wall of time in which billions of galaxies exist.
A friend who visited our home two weeks ago, mentioned "Fractal Time" as a must-read. I bought it the next day for $1 at our public library book sale fundraiser. It fits the theme of meeting the right people at the right time.
April 3, 2012
Gregg Braden’s tour through aspects of physics sometimes struck me like reading sci-fi. I love learning about quantum physics – somehow it’s more acceptable to my right-brain/ non-science way of understanding. He looks at fractals, nature’s repetitive patterns within itself, and builds a case for collective human emotion having influence on the course of the world. He also proposes that time is spiral rather than linear. I was especially intrigued with his explanation of controlled scientific experiments that show that the more intense the observers’ watching, the more they can influence and change the experiment’s outcomes. Pretty heady stuff. His mathematical approach to the Mayan calendar’s 2012 end and his own conclusions around it is so much more heartening than the current media/movie hysteria.
October 17, 2013
Fractal Time starts off with promise. Things happen in patterns in a cylindrical fashion. History repeats. People with habits are likely to continue them regardless of the specific person or objects surrounding them. However, after establishing this idea, author Gregg Braden starts running absolutely wild with it. He starts drawing patterns with events like military issues andterrorist attacks using wild examples including things that didn't actually happen but instead were thought about. With the types of things he uses as examples, with such vagueness, that it renders the entire book just about meaningless. The matter-of-fact attitude doesn't provide actual good reasoning. The actual claims he makes have been picked apart by other reviews so I recommend reading them.
May 7, 2014
I want to believe. Highly skeptical but so far the point by point refutations I have read online have been ad hominem and inadequate to say the least. I see a lot of rhetorical theatrics playing out in his book, a lot of tenuous connections being made, and the calculator I find too implausible to even give the benefit of the doubt as the inputs of history seem so arbitrary (history is made of stories we tell ourselves not rigid numbers). Still I feel like there is something there, not quite defined (for a book written in 2009, and google searching many of his claims in the present day, with the exception of a cataclysm happening on December 21st, 2012 - which, to be fair, he said was unlikely - a lot of what he said would happen or was the case is supported by reputable sources).
April 22, 2012
Again, another book about how science and spirituality are once again converging. Fractal Time examines the end of the Mayan calendar and posits that December 21, 2012 doesn't have to be all doom and gloom. There is hope for our future, and surely some future exists--just not sure who will inhabit that future. One thing seems certain: with all the talk of 21st Century Skills, only those who are walking the walk will inhabit the world to come. Our current globalization isn't about making sure you come out on top; rather it's figuring out how we all come out on top and working toward that end.
December 8, 2012
Very interesting. This book opened up a broader understanding for me of time and cycles and how we and nature are all connected. It also helped me understand the Mayan calendar much better, which does not actually say that world will end on Dec 21st. This was a listen-read for me (and thus an abridged version, which in this case was a good thing, I think) and I was impressed by how well the author narrates his own writing.
January 2, 2014
I got this book because I have an intense interest at the moment of how time moves for us. Not yet in the broad strokes of history and possible outcomes that the author talks about, but in the way we perceive the movement of time. We see it as a broad straight avenue. The physicist see it as nonlinear.
August 11, 2009
Fractal Time combines science and spirituality to present a positive way of looking at the December 2012 theories. Braden does not get overly technical and I found his writing interesting and informative. My favorite part of this book was the explanation of the elecrtro-magnetic potential of the human heart and how it can directly influence the natural world.
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