Prophecies of Nostradamus on World War III

Those studying the Prophecies of Nostradamus say that he has indicated the possibility of a Third
World War. Indeed, in some of his quatrains he mentions terrifying battles and events occurring in
and around Europe, Asia and Africa which do not seem to have happened till date. There is,
however, a difference of opinion among the experts about the overall sequence of these events
and most of all, their timing.

My approach to deciphering the quatrains is based on the assumption that if a world wide war of
this magnitude indeed takes place, it must have been mentioned in prophecies written in various
religious texts and prophecies of non-religious nature which are part of the folklore of different
cultures. I believe that a comparative study of all such prophecies vis-à-vis those of
Nostradamus, along with insights into the local culture, tradition, history etc. may enable us to
construct a more detailed picture of the prophesized events than what is possible by studying an
individual prophecy in isolation. Most of these prophecies concentrate on the local perspective of
a global war. But by finding out the similarities with other prophecies, we can find the global
connection of the local events.

Contrary to what many of us think, prophesized events are neither inevitable nor are their time of
occurrence fixed. A prophesized event is the one which is most likely to happen. It is merely one
of the several possibilities. Similarly, even if an event takes place, its timing is not fixed. The
deciding factor is the human free will. Collective human free will can alter an event, change its
timing or even stop it entirely. Some events are hard to change for it requires a collective decision
moving away entirely from the "logical" course. Sometimes, even an individual's decision may
alter an event having wide implications. Most affected by human free will is the timing of an event.
While collective human behavior is hard to change, the time of the event taking place changes
according to collective or individual decisions. Some prophecies do indicate a timing of the war,
not in terms of the exact date but by mentioning the appearance of certain signs like a specific
astrological conjunction or an event preceding the war.

Broadly speaking, the various prophecies indicate that the Third World War will be preceded by
an unprecedented increase in large-scale natural calamities all over the world like big
earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, famines etc. Localized wars, revolutions,
political disturbances and large scale terrorist attacks will increase. Assassinations of high profile
leaders will take place and tensions between various countries will rise. The economies of various
countries will be severely affected, leading to unemployment or inflation. The actual war would be
of a short duration but is said to be several times more destructive in terms of the cost of human
lives and property than all the previous world wars taken together.

To summarize what I have analyzed in this site, based on various prophecies, the Third World
War would start when Russia suddenly attacks Europe in coalition with certain Middle Eastern
countries like Iran, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Libya and probably China. Prior to the World War III, USA
would be severely crippled by terrorist attacks, assassinations, a civil war and an economic
collapse. Prior to that, there would be a civil war in Italy, during which the Vatican would be
overrun by the mob. The Pope would escape but many of his cardinals would die. The palace and
the chapels would be burnt down. While on the run, the Pope would be captured and killed. There
would be a schism in the Vatican and three Popes would reign at the same time, propped up by
competing powers. Supported by US and other catholic countries, the Papacy would be shifted
elsewhere and a "true" Pope would be elected there. Europe would be almost overrun by the
Russian and eastern forces and many of its cities and also those of USA would be destroyed by
conventional weapons as well as weapons of mass destruction like nuclear, chemical and
biological weapons. Russia would attack from the North as well as from the East of Europe. An
Arab / Iranian army would attack from the south. The Pope, and later the British Prime Minister
would be forced to flee to the US. Paris would be destroyed by "revolutionaries" within France.
The attack on the US would stop the Civil War there. New types of weapons, like Chemical
Weapons and particularly what appears to be portable Laser weapons, would be used in the war.
At the same time an unprecedented disaster would take place. A comet would suddenly appear
over the earth in the peak of the war, would break into several pieces and fall to the earth.
Smaller pieces would rain fire on cities and forests all over the world, burning them down. A large
piece would fall into the sea creating a Tsunami of Biblical proportions, flooding parts of Europe
(including Britain), USA and Africa. One medium sized chunk would fall on land, creating a huge
crater, resulting in earthquake and volcano activities all over the world. This event would loosen
the grip of the invading army over Europe. A joint coalition of US and European forces under the
leadership of a charismatic leader "Chiren" would organize a counter-attack against the invading
forces in Europe and elsewhere. The Russian forces in Europe would be almost destroyed by the
counter-attack and this would lead to a revolution in Russia and the Russian leader who started
the war would be assassinated. Russia, under a new leader would then join the western coalition
and fight against its former allies, who would eventually be defeated. The Pope would return to
Europe and Chiren would be crowned the Monarch. Peace would return to the world after a loss
of almost two-thirds of its population and the wealth of nations accumulated over millennia. But
this would surely not be the end of the world.

It is hard to understand at this stage why Russia would suddenly attack Europe. Yet, most of the
prophecies seem to agree on this part. Logically too, it is only Russia which has the capability to
take on the might of USA and Europe, even after the break up of its empire. It still has sufficient
nuclear weapons, technology and manpower to do so. The overall picture of the events leading to
the World War is not clear. What appears from some prophecies is that immediately preceding
the war, Russia would have tensions with the west over some Middle Eastern affair. But the
actual war would begin after the assassination of a political leader in the Balkan area, who could
be the famous "Mabus" often discussed in the context of Nostradamus's prophecies. The Russian
attack might be a result of its perception that the assassination, probably in one of its friendly
countries, could be a prelude to an western invasion and the best way would be to pre-empt it. A
major terrorist attack on the US, assassination of some world leaders and another war in the
Middle East may precede the Third World War, apart from numerous natural disasters. Some
prophecies say that before the 3rd World War, Israel would grant statehood to Palestine. Then oil
would be discovered there and a war would start between Israel and Palestine. It is probable that
it is this war that would generate tensions between USA and Russia, since US and Russian fleets
are said to confront each other in a tense standoff in the Mediterranean before the war in yet
another prophecy. The Bible and the Islamic texts also mention Iraq. It is said that the river
Euphrates would dry up and something would be discovered in its dried up riverbed, which would
cause much tension among nations. There are also prophecies on the destruction of the Al-Aqsa
Mosque / Temple Mount in Jerusalem before the war and the death of Saddam Hussein in US
custody even before his trial begins.

With the death of Pope John Paul II on 3rd April 2005, the Prophecies of St. Malachy have once again become the topic
of discussion. Malachy termed Pope John Paul II - the 110th Pope since his prophecy, as "De Labore Solis" or "The labor
of the Sun". Pope John Paul II was born on 18th May, 1920, the day when a Solar Eclipse took place. His burial was set
on 8th April, 2005 and on that day a Solar Eclipse took place once again, making the prophecy of Malachy more
meaningful. The next Pope, the 111th and the penultimate, was termed "The Glory of Olive" by Malachy. "Peter the
Roman" coming after him, would be the last Pope, during whose time, the world would come to an end. Many say that the
original prophecy did not mention "Peter the Roman" and his name was inserted afterwards and that "The Glory of the
Olive" would be the last Pope. This prophecy was fulfilled (or made to fulfill) by Cardinal Ratzinger, who after his election
as Pope took the name "Pope Benedict XVI". St. Benedict started the order of Benedictines or "Olivetans", as they are
popularly known. However, if we go by the prophecies of Abbott "Merlin" Joachim, St. Malachy's prophecy would signify
the deeds during his Papacy, rather than the name he takes. There are some contradictions in our understanding of the
prophecies of St. Malachy and those of Nostradamus. But many prophecies, including those of Nostradamus speak of a
"Great Pope" reigning after the war along with the "Great Monarch". Nostradamus says in V.56 - Through the death of a
very old Pope will be elected a Roman of good age. It will be said of him that he weakens the (Holy) Seat, but he will hold it long
and with stinging effort. This quatrain may refer to the election of an aged Pope of the Roman Catholic Church, after the
death of a very old Pope Following the death of Pope John Paul II., Joseph Ratzinger, aged 78 was elected Pope
Benedict XVI. He was one of the oldest Popes in history at the time of election. Criticized by many within the Church as
fundamentalist and divisive, Nostradamus seems to say that this Pope would reign for a long time inspite of the criticism
and would run the affairs of the Church with a strong hand.
There are numerous prophecies on Earth Changes occurring before or during the war. Notable
are the visions of Edgar Cayce in this respect. It is predicted that the US coastline from Los
Angeles to San Francisco would break up and sink into the sea following a huge earthquake,
resulting in the death of millions. Several other areas all over the world would sink into the sea,
including Japan and new lands would rise from the sea in many places. Edgar Cayce said that
Atlantis, located near the Bimini Islands would rise from the sea. The weather would also change
drastically in many areas of the world. We are already experiencing changes in the global
weather pattern, the last decade being the warmest in the recorded history.

The contents of this site, including the sequence of events would be continuously updated as I go
on analyzing various prophecies and as the actual events unfold. In the meantime, participate in
the Discussion board of this site to discuss the current events and happenings around the world
and post your own interpretations as well as exchange ideas with people from around the world.