Text | Xiaofeng talks about history
Edit | Xiaofeng talks about history
Thousands of years ago, in addition to the oppression of feudal emperors, the people of all dynasties also had to face various natural disasters.
Floods were frequent, plagues were rampant, and famine claimed countless lives. In order to survive, not to mention eating weeds, there are many people who eat Guanyin soil.
But why is it that in the face of famine, people "eat everything" but turn a blind eye to the fish and shrimp in the river?
I. Storm
In fact, the causes of famine in ancient times were varied, and in addition to the inevitable natural causes, there were also various human factors.
In ancient times, when agricultural production technology was relatively backward, its own grain production was relatively limited. In the event of natural disasters, such as droughts and floods, insect plagues, etc., the food supply will be seriously affected, which will eventually lead to large-scale food shortages and starvation.
If there is a flood at this time, it will also directly lead to the blockage of transportation routes.
This also means that it is very difficult to get food supplies to the ground immediately, and it takes a long time to get information or mobilize support when transportation is not "cleared".
Even if the amount of food is sorted out to meet the needs of the victims, it is often subject to a series of external losses in the process. In the absence of corruption, officials are doing their duty and acting immediately, and this process will take at least half a month.
However, for the hungry, a waiting time of half a month or more means an increase in the number of deaths.
It is also during this period of waiting that the people who were originally emotionally stable will gradually lose hope and fall into panic.
As a result, the number of displaced people will continue to expand, and various viruses will also spread and cause greater disasters. And even in the whole process, a plague was created.
In order to survive, they will do everything they can to catch and eat.
But the question is, why do the victims at this time still leave the fish in the river and do not eat them? Instead, they pick all kinds of grass roots, and even Guanyin soil, to satisfy their stomachs?
2. Food in times of famine
Anyone who has known history knows that in ancient societies, people mainly relied on agriculture for their survival, and they were relatively unfamiliar with the skills and tools of fishing. Fishing requires the use of nets, harpoons and gear, and the production and use of these tools requires a great deal of experience and skill.
However, the vast majority of the poor do not have the time and energy to Xi learn and master these skills, which is why it is simply not practical to engage in fishing activities during disasters.
Not to mention, the process of fishing requires a lot of physical strength and energy, but you have to think that during the famine, due to factors such as hunger and malnutrition, people usually do not have enough energy to do manual labor.
However, fishing requires hours in streams and rivers, and even if you are lucky, you may not be able to catch a large number of fish and shrimp in a short period of time.
In contrast, it is easier and easier to gnaw on tree bark and pick wild vegetables, at least to fill your stomach quickly.
At the same time, the cooking conditions of food in ancient times of famine were also one of the reasons why people chose to gnaw on tree bark instead of fishing. Due to the scarcity of resources, people often lack sufficient cooking materials such as oil and salt.
Cooking fish and shrimp required the right amount of oil and seasoning, and seasoning was a luxury at the time. Moreover, fish and shrimp also have high requirements for cooking, and if they are not handled properly, they can easily produce fishy smells.
Wild vegetables are relatively easy to cook and can be eaten with simple blanching water. These are the leading factors for hungry people to prefer to eat grass roots and bark rather than fish and catch shrimp.
In addition to practical reasons, the culture and perceptions of ancient societies also had an impact on people's dietary choices. Under the concept of reverence for rivers and lakes, many people believe that the fish and shrimp that live in the rivers are the embodiment of the gods, and that preying on them may invite misfortune.
Out of reverence and fear for the gods, people were reluctant to offend the creatures of the river and chose other food sources.
Therefore, it is not that the victims are unwilling to eat fish and shrimp, but that this itself is unrealistic.
Just like in the period of Emperor Hui of the Jin Dynasty, when the people were hungry and ate grass and soil, he sighed: "Why not eat minced meat?"
This is a reluctance to eat, this is clearly a huge gap between reality and ideals.
So in the face of natural disasters that cannot be stopped, how will the rulers of the current dynasty respond?
3. Disaster relief and people's rescue
As we said, famine was a common and serious problem in ancient society, and disaster relief is also a concentrated embodiment of the wisdom and strategy of the ancients.
In the face of famine, most of the rulers were not just the existence of Zhumen wine and meat. On the contrary, in order to stabilize the country for a long time, they often need to put in more energy at this time.
When faced with natural disasters, local governments will quickly set up porridge factories to use them as an important part of disaster relief.
During the Northern Song Dynasty, when Fan Zhongyan was a government official, he not only encouraged porridge vendors to provide free porridge, but also encouraged porridge business owners and restaurants to produce all kinds of porridge to give to the poor for free, and also developed a large number of workshops, government shops, and private disaster relief commercial units.
This will not only solve the problem of the victims, but also increase employment, and this series of measures has been used by the other side for generations.
It is even known that during the reign of Emperor Kangxi, because of the Qing Dynasty at that time, the Qing Dynasty also encouraged the vast number of disaster victims to reclaim wasteland in Sichuan to improve the livelihood of the disaster victims, and finally achieved the effect of reducing the phenomenon of displaced people and reclaiming wasteland.
In addition to the first-time disaster relief, there will also be a special report on the disaster assessment.
However, due to the backward geographical technology in ancient times, the disaster assessment is not as accurate as in modern times, and the source of information transmission only relies on patrols and interviews with local people, and then combines past experience to integrate it into "a special report".
However, regardless of whether there are errors or not, this disaster prevention record and the verification of the corresponding antecedents can also facilitate better rescue.
In the relief of the imperial court, the private forces also played an important role. The wealthy and gentry of the time would often take the lead in donating money for disaster relief, prompting the wealthy around them to follow suit.
Their Amway donations to help the victims eventually formed a positive cycle of social assistance.
And as the famine increased, when a vicious circle of plague was created, the hospital and doctors also played an important role at this moment. According to the records of Ming Chongzhen, there was an outbreak of epidemics in the capital and other places at that time, and people lacked money to buy medicine.
The imperial court sent imperial doctors to the five cities for diagnosis and treatment, and provided medicines for free distribution to the people. With their skills and expertise, these physicians played an important role in fighting the plague and saving lives.
It can be said that although the technology of the ancients was not as advanced as ours, they did use a lot of wisdom and strategies in the process of providing relief to the victims.
The imperial court provided food, jobs, and free medical care through various measures to bring practical help to the victims. At the same time, the private sector has also played an important role, with the wealthy donating money to disaster relief, creating a virtuous circle among society.
These wisdom and strategies not only helped the victims tide over the difficulties, but also reflected the great importance and thinking that the ancient people attached to the relief work.
The author thinks
All kinds of history are in front of us, and how small human beings are in the face of natural disasters. If we want to avoid the recurrence of disasters, we must fundamentally respect the laws of nature.
More importantly, in our daily life, we should also learn from history and save every grain of food.