San Lo Mvu 28Plagues of Former Days
Pāli / Sanskrit:Plagues of Former Days
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The Sutta of the Calamities of Former Days
Explanation from the Theravāda Vinaya Piṭaka
Background
The Sutta “The Calamities of Former Days” is recorded in the Vinaya Piṭaka, in the San Lo Mvu section, the collection of regulations for life in the Sangha in the Theravāda tradition. It is not a preaching sutta, but part of the rules of practice and the history of the early Buddhist religious community.
In this context, the elders and the Buddha answered questions about the roots of calamities, epidemics, and hardships that humankind must endure. This section is closely connected with the Buddhist understanding of cause and effect (kamma), and of how actions in the past produce consequences in the present.
The recording of “the calamities of former days” in the Vinaya Piṭaka has special significance: it helps the monastic community and devotees understand clearly that the difficulties encountered are not accidental, but have deep causes. This encourages a rational and mindful approach to life’s challenges.
Main Content
According to the Theravāda tradition, this discourse presents explanations of the causes of great calamities in history: epidemics, famine, natural disasters, and social disorder. Contrary to views that attribute such events to gods or absolute sin, Buddhism explains that they arise from collective unwholesome actions (akusala kamma) of human beings.
The discourse teaches that when communities, rulers, or an entire society act contrary to the true Dharma, through greed, hatred, and delusion, collective consequences will appear. These calamities are not punishments from a higher power, but the natural results of causal factors (paṭiccasamuppāda).
It is important that Buddhism does not say that a person who suffers illness or calamity necessarily does so because of their own bad actions in this life. Instead, it considers both actions from immeasurable past lives and the collective impact of the community. This teaching opens a deeper way of understanding suffering and moral responsibility.
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