The article tries to interrogate the gendered world of disease through an exploration of the deities associated with contagious diseases. The complex world of disease, cure and patient care was one infused with ideas of sacrality and notions of pollution and purity in the premodern period. The article will explore the anthropomorphizing of diseases into female deities at the local level and the Brahmanical attempt to transform these local goddesses. Ayurvedic works in Sanskrit, Tamil and Malayalam, talapurāṇa and folklore have been consulted to analyse the role and relevance of goddesses of disease, in addition to fieldwork in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
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