also: ほうそうしん
smallpox deity; smallpox demon
A folkloric deity or demon associated with smallpox. Historically, people prayed to this deity for protection from the disease or to appease it. The term can refer to both a malevolent spirit causing smallpox and a protective deity granting immunity.
During the Edo period, there was a custom of enshrining the smallpox deity.
When smallpox was rampant, people wore red items and prayed to the smallpox deity.