Du Fu, a famous poet of the Tang Dynasty, once wrote in the "Two Songs of Qujiang": "Wine debts are common everywhere, and life is rare for seventy years." Wear flowers butterflies deeply to see, dot water dragonflies model fly. The scenery flows together, and it is not contrary to the temporary appreciation. ”
This is Du Fu's indignant words, his feelings about the impermanence of life.
In traditional Chinese culture, when a person reaches sixty years old, it is called "flower armor" and seventy is called "ancient rarity".
So why do you say that "man has come to seventy years"? Historically, archaeologists have found that the average life expectancy in ancient China was generally less than seventy. I think there are probably two reasons.
One
Medical technology is a determinant of life expectancy
The culture of Chinese medicine has a long history, but compared with ancient medical technology and modern medical technology, it is a little bit less efficient. In ancient times, the most shocking surgical operation that can be heard may be that Hua Tuo scraped Guan Yu's bones to heal his wounds, and more was conditioned through decoctions, injections, and so on.
Therefore, in the development of the entire history of Chinese herbal medicine, many diseases are actually those that Langzhong cannot diagnose and treat.
At the same time, the health conditions in ancient times could not be guaranteed, and many precious medicinal herbs were very expensive, and many people could only wait for death when they encountered major diseases. This has directly led to a decline in life expectancy.
On the other hand, the status of the lang is not high, and it is generally a skill passed down from generation to generation by the family, so it is easy to lose it.
Moreover, such a medical technology that relies on experience and inheritance is difficult to quantitatively record and circulate like modern medicine.
In addition, ancient China attached great importance to etiquette, which also made many women unable to get timely treatment.
Chinese often said "three sisters and six wives" there are "medicine women", "stable women", "witches", these nine occupations are actually the bottom occupations of society, which are despised by people. Because men and women in ancient times were not intimate, Langzhong could not enter the female boudoir for diagnosis and treatment, and it was generally "medicine women" to diagnose and treat or "witches" to "cast spells". During childbirth, it was also the "stable mother" who went to deliver the baby, but due to technology, equipment, sanitary conditions, etc., many women died tragically in the delivery bed. This kind of cannibalistic etiquette directly leads to the fact that most women are unable to receive timely diagnosis and treatment.
Two
Natural disasters and wars leave many young and fleeting
In ancient times, people's ability to resist natural disasters was far less than today, especially in China, as an agrarian society, it depended on the sky to eat, and natural disasters directly left them either displaced or starved. In the past two thousand years, the frequency of natural disasters in China has increased linearly, with an increase of almost 15 times.
The reason for this is mainly due to people's activities. On the one hand, it was the destruction caused by the factors of war, and the wars of all sizes from the Han Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty could not be counted; On the other hand, it is the destruction caused by people's reclamation.
For example, in the Yellow River Basin, the Yellow River often flooded during the flood period, making the surrounding people miserable, and the imperial courts often allocated funds for repairs, but coupled with the exploitation of corrupt officials and corrupt officials, basically this has become a historical problem.
In ancient China, due to medical conditions, medical ethics, social factors, etiquette and etiquette of men and women, etc., many people were sick and difficult to get timely and correct treatment. On the other hand, the rise and fall of dynasties, foreign wars, natural disasters, etc., which "prosper, the people suffer; death, the suffering of the people", also made the people's lives like grass and mustard, and they died early. hygiene