On The Natural Disasters And The Related Problems During The Jin Dynasties

During the Jin Dynasties, natural disasters took place frequently: They occurred almost every year and every place; Even to that several disasters took place in one year, with flood, drought, plague of locusts and famine happening one after another. Among them, flood, drought and plague of locusts were the most harmful. The next were pestilence, windstorm, frost hail, hailstorm and earthquake.These disasters destroyed the production seriously, forced the common people to wander about homeless, resulted in the country's financial difficulties and the sequence of society in confusion. The people suffered from the disasters but couldn't understand them correctly because the productive forces and science and technology were low at that time. So they drew wrong conclusion by false analogy. In that period the heaven-human response was in fashion. Buddhism, Taoism folk beliefs took the chance of developing themselves.The rulers were compelled or on their own initiative to improve their domination and carried out the calamity-centered measures in order to answer the heaven-human response. The major measures included the following three points: Before the disaster, the government developed the economy, built irrigation works and stored up grain against famine; Facing disaster, the government averted disaster by prayers, allocated grain and eliminated the locusts; After the disaster, the government relieved land tax and other levies, loaned goods to people and practiced thrift to comfort the victims of a natural calamity. The people in stricken areas helped each other and saved themselves. Clans played a positive role too.