Śītalā Devi — the cool goddess
Deities

Śītalā Devi — the cool goddess

Śītalā — smallpox-and-cool mother of eastern India

Status · Anusandhāna
Source · Tier 2
Tradition · Hindu
Period · Varies

Śītalā Devi — the cool goddess

Tradition

Hindu / Shakta / Folk

Location

  • Varanasi/Kolkata/Dhaka widespread, Multiple, India (25.0°N, 83.0°E)

Sacred Narrative

Śītalā ("the cool one") is the mother-goddess invoked for protection from and cure of smallpox (historically), chicken-pox, measles, and other eruptive fevers. The name is euphemistic — she IS the disease but also the cure. Shrines dot eastern India: every Bengal village has one. Worshipped at the Basanti Pūjā (spring). In older times, smallpox was thought to be her direct touch; today the disease is eradicated but the worship remains.

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✦Wisdom Graph: Divine Associations✦

📖 Stories

  • Narrative of Śītalā Devi — the cool goddess
    **Śītalā** (
    — Tradition

🪔 Worship Procedures

Daily rites
• tradition-specific

🛕 Principal Temples

  • Main shrine of Śītalā Devi — the cool goddessVaries
    📍 Varanasi/Kolkata/Dhaka widespread, Multiple, India, India
    25.0000°, 83.0000° — view on map
    Festivals: Annual festival
    Śītalā — smallpox-and-cool mother of eastern India

🎊 Festivals

  • Annual Śītalā Devi — the cool goddess festival
    Seasonally · 1–10 days

📜 Primary Scriptural Sources

  • Hindu primary textsscriptural/oral