Certain Special Practices for a Smallpox Patient

Question

In the illness of smallpox — tying gold on the patient’s neck on account of the “shadow” (a supposed evil influence of the disease spirit), not letting the members of the household change their clothes during that period, or not entering the patient’s house after changing clothes, or not letting someone who has come from outside go to the patient at once, not cooking meat, and the like — how are all these matters from the standpoint of the Sacred Law?

Answer

If an experienced physician says that the smell of meat or the smell of washed clothes (starch and the like) is harmful to such a patient, there is no harm in taking precaution against it as a matter of treatment, by way of abstention. But avoiding these things under the belief that smallpox is “Mataji” (a Hindu mother goddess associated with smallpox)

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

Preview. The full text opens with JavaScript enabled.