Phul Mata
Hindu deity / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Phul Mata is a Hindu goddess of disease, one of a group of seven sister goddesses with similar associations. Her sisters were Sitala Mata, Chamariya mata, Durga Kali, Maha Kali, Bhadra kali and Kalika Bhavani.[1][2][3] As a group, they were well known in northern India, and were often represented by balls of clay.[4][5] Phul Mata was specifically associated with typhoid fever.[6]
Phul Mata is mentioned in epic and Puranic Hindu literature.[7] She may have originally been perceived as a shakti, a personification of divine power, but in Hinduism gradually became associated with evil intent and illness. She was said to inflict sickness on children under seven years of age.[8]