10 Options for the End of the World According to Different Religions

Between broken nuclear non-proliferation agreements, warring global superpowers and looming ecological collapse, the end of the world seems closer than ever. In times like these, humanity turns to religion. But which one to trust?

Beyond the big five, there are some religions that most have never heard of, let alone researched. So here's a rundown of what they have to say when it comes to the end of the world — in order of how much we hope they're wrong.

10. Invisible village of ancestors (Dinka, Akan, etc.)

In the religions of African ancestors, As a rule, there is no concept of an apocalypse. But they are still worth mentioning because of the alternative viewpoint they present. Instead of a slow but steady fall from grace to a punishing and catastrophic end, they see only a “timeless infinity” in which humanity exists forever. The rainy season and planting are followed by harvesting, the dry season is followed by the rainy season, planting, and so on. Just like the waxing and waning moon, time is an endless rhythm.

People die, of course, but not completely. After death, the "righteous dead" join the "invisible world" "ancestral villages" Righteousness is judged by respect for ancestral traditions and the remembrance of the dead, in other words, by continuity.

But this is not the future golden age that apocalyptic religions talk about. At least for the religions of African ancestors, the golden age is in the past. After all, every passing year only adds to the past, so if there is eternity anywhere, it is here.

9. Oblivion (Yarsanism)

The Kurdish religion Yarsanism is an offshoot of the Cult of Angels. It has no holy book. Instead, its teachings and prophecies have been passed down orally for centuries. Like other branches Cult of Angels, Yarsanism believes that souls migrate through various reincarnations. Beginning with inanimate objects and ending with plants and non-human animals, the goal of this journey is purification, culminating in a human body worthy of union with the Universal Spirit. Taking into account sins and regressive transmigrations, this process (known as dun ba dun , "oblivion into oblivion" ) can take up to 1000 lifetimes or 50,000 years.

If after its 1001st transmigration the soul remains non-human, it must await the Last Judgment or Pardivari , "crossing the bridge".

Thus, unlike most other traditions on this list, a person determines the date of his personal apocalypse through his behavior.

8. The End of the Beast Era (Daesujinrihe)

The central place in the Korean religion is Daesongjinrihae ( Brotherhood of Truth Taesong ) is occupied by the belief in two main eras of humanity: the old world, sungcheong , full of sins, and the later world, hucheon , full of goodness. The old world in which we live is divided into "Six Stages of Decreasing Intimacy with the Dao" , that is, into six ages of increasing corruption and chaos. These are the ages of: Divine Thearchs; Wise Emperors; Kings empowered by Heaven; cunning tyrants; uncivilized rulers; and, finally, Beasts.

We are currently living in the last of these, the Beast Era, a time of maximum deviation from the Dao. But this also means that the Late World is inevitable. Not everyone will get there, but those who do will live forever in eternal youth and abundance. When they open the chest, there will always be clothes and food. There will be no war, no jealousy, only peace for this "noble people" .

Nevertheless, there will be rulers. But these rulers—the 12,960 “noble persons empowered by the Tao”—will be obliged to show mercy. In fact, they become rulers only as a reward for their kindness. They are the highest of the Daesungjinrihe devotees (of whom there are more than two million) and can even come from outside the faith, if the spirit is sufficiently developed.

7. Dawn of a New Era (Aetherius Society)

Aetherius Society , founded in 1955 London taxi driver Dr. George King, believes that aliens have long ruled humanity - in the forms of Jesus, Buddha, Gandhi and others. But the central alien is Master Aetherius, who spoke through the founder of the Society. According to this being, the New Age "is born at this moment" ; it is up to us whether it is pleasant or "a little unpleasant". But in any case, "the wheat will be separated from the chaff".

The apocalypse preceding the dawn of the New Age will include various catastrophic changes, including an increase in natural disasters ( check ), gradual reduction of the ionosphere ( check ) and the subsequent increase in cosmic rays and UV radiation reaching the surface of our planet. planet ( check ). In our present form, says the Aetherius Society, we are not spiritually evolved enough to benefit; instead, these changes will kill us. But the next Master is on the way, and the Earth itself is set to change its position in the cosmos. We are, according to the teachings of Master Aetherius, at the dawn of the Age of Aquarius—a new golden age for humanity.

This end-times vision differs significantly from Raelianism, another extraterrestrial religion. According to their prophet Rael, the development of nuclear weapons was "the sixth seal of the Apocalypse" , and its use in a nuclear war will be the seventh. At that point, our extraterrestrial creators, the Elohim (Hebrew for "gods"), will not interfere. But they will clone on the Planet of the Eternals all the people who were lucky enough to have transmitted their "cellular blueprint" to Rael or one of his guides in advance.

6. Ragnarok (Asatru)

Based on the ancient religion of the Scandinavians, modern Asatru revives the belief in old gods of the Aesir , as well as in their (and our) final demise. Ragnarok literally means "Death of the Gods" in Old Norse, but they will take the world of men with them, Midgard or "Middle-earth". In Scandinavian mythology, the land of the gods Asgard is located in the very heart Midgard This is also the place where the ash tree grows. Yggdrasil , whose death would mean the end of the world.

What we know about Ragnarok is happening from two main sources : Prose Edda 13th century and 10th century poems "Voluspa" First comes moral chaos, murder and a harsh, cruel winter - a hopeless Fimbulwinter , which will last for three years. The wolf Skoll will swallow the sun, and the wolf Hati will swallow the moon. The wolf Fenrir will be released from his slavery into the world, as will Loki and the Midgard Serpent. These and other giants, demons and ghosts will attack Asgard from all sides, and each of the gods will fall as a hero. Their last moments are actually are described in quite some detail : Thor will kill the Midgard Dragon, then stagger back nine paces and die from its poison; Loki and Heimdall will kill each other, as will Tyr and Garm, the hound of the underworld. And Odin will be swallowed by the wolf Fenrir. Freyr, armed only with a stag's horn, will be killed by the giant Surtr, who will then proceed to destroy the earth. Everything will be burned, including the "World Tree." Yggdrasil When this will happen is unknown (although it is said that in the Viking calendar it is set for February 22, 2014).

But new life will follow. The children of the gods (Odin's sons Vidharr and Vali, Thor's sons Modi and Magni, and others) will inherit Asgard. And from a new shoot of Yggdrasil called "Mimir's Treasure Vault," a woman named Lif ("Life") and a man named Lifthrassir ("Stubborn Will to Live") will emerge. Together they will populate the earth.

5. Apocalyptic war (Yazidism)

Another branch of the so-called Cult of Angels , an ancient belief system whose true name has been lost to history, Yazidism is a minority religion in Iraq. They worship To the Peacock Angel or Malak, a fallen angel identified by outsiders with the Devil - hencethe unfounded reputation of the Yazidis as devil worshipers In addition to two written scriptures, the Book of Revelation and the Black Book, Yazidism is an oral tradition, the teachings of which are passed down orally and embellished.

Prophecies are transmitted in the same way, although, oddly enough, they come from what the Yazidis call “the book” or “ "defter" . This "book" has no material existence. It is said that when seers enter a trance and receive visions, they "get into the book" ( defter keftin ). Often the content of these visions relates to the end of the world.

A recurring theme is the looming apocalyptic war between the forces of good and evil, in which will fight holy beings ( xas ) and supernatural beings ( bastiné ). It is said that as of 2020, 200 Hasov were preparing for war in Iran, while Miriam (Mary) was in London, building the planes that would carry the angels. Some of the prophecies are very specific, listing the countries involved, how long the war would last, and how many people would die. “There will be a war in America. There will be a war in Holland, in Britain, in Lebanon… Twelve years will this war last. In twelve years there will be only six million left in Iraq.”

But the forces of good will always prevail, and life will become pleasant again - for the survivors and those who are yet to come. Another prophecy predicts the destruction of all life on Earth, followed by the arrival of "golden-eyed" (holy beings) who will "make the world pleasant again." Another speaks of a "great flood" during which "the earth will be like the sea," but after which "all will be well again."

4. The Fourth Destruction (Mandaeism)

The Mandaean religion, which originated in Persia in the first centuries of our era, worships above all the impersonal "god" "Great Life" or fertility, symbolized by "living water." Eschewing hierarchy, they see rulers ( archons ) an obstacle to spiritual progress . Therefore, although they consider John the Baptist as their own, they see him not as a prophet or a leader, but as one of many adepts of healing magic, Nasuraev . Jesus too was a nasurai, they say, but one who misled people, since, among other things, his Byzantine followers used stagnant (i.e. dead) water for baptism and forced monks and nuns to celibacy .

Unfortunately, we know little about Mandaean cosmology. It is believed that their Haran Gauaita contained the entire world history of the Mandaeans, from the creation of the world to the apocalypse, but only fragments have survived. Nevertheless, what we know from this and other texts is astonishing. According to the Mandaeans, the future of humanity ends with chaos among the Arabs, the reign of a false messiah, the return of Anush Utra (the angel from world of light ) and "the last fiasco before the end of the world under the rule of Amatit, daughter of Qin."

All this will happen 480,000 years after Adam. But it will not be the first such apocalypse, and the fourth . The race of Adam and Eve was destroyed by "sword and plague" 216,000 years after their creation. Then came the age of Ram and Rud, who survived the previous destruction, whose race lasted 156,000 years. After the second destruction, the survivors Shurbai and Sharhabiil gave birth to a new race of people, but after 100,000 years it was destroyed by a flood. From the survivors Nuh and Nhuraita came our race, which according to prophecy is allotted only 8,000 years. In particular, our destruction is appointed for the 791st year of the sign of fish, Nuna , and although it is unclear when this will happen, it will come on the wind or through the air.

3. The End of White Yang (Yiguandao)

Once seen as a threat by the Chinese Communist Party, Yiguandao spread to Taiwan in the 1980s and, after decades of suppression, was eventually legalized there too. Since then, the religion, a blend of Taoist and Buddhist ideas, has been embraced even on the mainland .

The Yiguandao cosmology consists primarily of the “Three Yang Eras” (or “Three Sun Eras”), each presided over by a Buddha. The first, the “Blue Yang Era,” lasted 1,886 years from 3086 to 1200 BCE, under the supervision of Buddha Dipamkara. Then came the 3,114-year “Red Yang Era” (1200 BCE – 1912 CE) under Buddha Shakyamuni. Our age, the “White Yang Era,” will last 10,800 years. under Buddha Maitreya .

So, according to Yiguandao, we have until the 127th century (12712 CE) before the end of humanity. This will complete the ninth “mega-month” of the 129,000-year “mega-year” allotted to the universe by the Supreme Goddess Wuji Laomu. The Earth itself will last longer, beginning to disintegrate in the tenth “mega-month,” until finally, will not disappear without a trace together with Heaven in the twelfth.

2. Return to Iluun (Nuwaub Moorish Nation)

Giza Sphinx

The Nuwaubian Moor Nation emerged in the 1970s and 80s as a congregation of Ansaru Allah, a black separatist group based in Brooklyn. Founded by Dr. Malachi (aka Dwight York), it rebranded in the 1990s with an Afro-futuristic, extraterrestrial undertone. According to the Nuwaubian scriptures (all written by Malachi), black people are superior to white people. While whites descended from apes, blacks were created by aliens. Also, it wasn’t just the ancient Egyptians who were black; Jesus, Buddha, Muhammad, and all the other prophets were “dark-skinned” and “curly-haired.”

In 1993, Malachi moved the center of his religion to a purpose-built complex in Georgia. Known as Tama-Re, it featured replicas of the Egyptian pyramids, the Sphinx, and other monuments and temples. Here, the Nuwaubians declared their sovereignty as a nation and began stockpiling weapons.

They were preparing for the end times. The alien creators of the Nuwaubians were returning to "take your children" and destroy all the Caucasians. Then the aliens took the Nuwaubians - all 144,000 people , if the 2,000 or so devotees hurry up and have more children - back to their home galaxy of Iluvn, where can be found planet of Dr. Malachi Rizk .

1. Project Lucifer (Pana-Wave Labs)

Pana-Wave Lab, a Japanese religion known for wearing white clothes and running a convoy white vans to reflect radiation, put forward many prophecies about the end of time. Believing that the Earth began 365 million years ago on a star called Veh-erde, they claim that we have been guided ever since by aliens, particularly through their founder Yuko Chino. Not only were "communist guerillas" slowly killing her by bombarding her with gamma rays, microwaves, X-rays and other radiation, she claimed, but the apocalypse was looming. On May 15, 2003, an unknown tenth planet would pass close to Earth and flip its poles, causing earthquakes and tsunamis that would wipe out much of humanity. Hoping to survive it, she and her convoy traveled across Japan looking for a place to wait it out. When May 15 passed without incident, a spokesperson rescheduled the apocalypse for the following week, May 22, 2003. Once again, they were wrong.

But they didn’t stop there. In July 2004, they announced that cracks were forming in the seabed of Japan and that “at this rate, Japan will sink to the bottom of the sea” by the spring of 2005. The Lab’s new plan was to build a spaceship to leave the planet. Unfortunately, however, they were unable to obtain the necessary steel-titanium alloy. But it didn’t matter, because by the spring of 2005, an alternative scheme had been devised. Project Circle P, in which the P stood for “pickup truck,” assured Chino’s followers that a fleet of UFOs would save them from the coming disaster.

The most important of these to them was a project code-named "Lucifer." According to the Chino memo, the U.S. government planned to "turn Jupiter into a new sun" by launching a probe full of plutonium at it. This would turn Mars into dust, turning it into an asteroid belt, and now Jupiter's immediate gravity would pull the Earth right through it, killing 99 percent of humanity. While that hasn't happened yet, Chino's death in 2006 has deprived us of any further updates.