The time for worrying about the apocalypse is long over, and the National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI) is here to tell us why.

Joining a host of other experts who are striving on both scientific and cultural fronts to dispel doomsday fears (and focus people’s minds on  real problems, such as climate change), the NMAI presents Maya from the Inside: The 13 Bak´tun as Challenge to the Western Mind, a presentation by renowned scholar and Jakltek Maya Victor Montejo starting at 2:00 p.m. Originally from Guatemala, Montejo speaks here about the "deep meaning of Maya culture and history," the NMAI says.

It follows Maya Calendar Tradition and the Way of Life, which explained the Mayan calendar and why it does not predict the end of the world. Both are part of the weekend’s celebration of the turning over of the Bak’tun, or the Long Count calendar.

Bak’tun 13: A Guatemalan Celebration of Time is a free festival running from December 14 through 16. The museum is encouraging visitors to tweet their questions to @SmithsonianNMAI using the hashtag #MayaCalendar.

View Maya from the Inside: The 13 Bak´tun as Challenge to the Western Mind, below.