La divinidad en la enfermedad y la sanación dialógica: una aproximación filosófica al ritual de Śītalā en Bengala Occidental y al mito de Karkaṭī en el Yogavāsiṣṭha

The goddess Śītalā has been associated with smallpox in West Bengal since before the eighth century CE, while Karkaṭī appears as the cause of cholera in one of the narratives of the Yogavāsiṣṭha. The myths surrounding these goddes ses, and the reasons attributed to them for either causing or alleviating illness, reveal a therapeutic paradigm in which a dialogue with the disease itself is established through ritual. This essay presents a philosophical-hermeneutic analysis of these narratives, allowing for a critical reflection on contemporary forms of the relationship between doctor and patient, as well as between the individual and their own illness. In doing so, it highlights the dialogical nature of the healing process.