Disease, religion and medicine: smallpox in nineteenth-century Benin
Hist. ciênc. saúde-Manguinhos; 19 (supl.1), 2012
The essay examines, with special reference to smallpox, the perception and interpretation of disease in pre-colonial Dahomey, present-day Republic of Benin. Because disease is seen primarily as a punishment from the gods and not just as a medical problem or a bodily disorder, traditional cult priests pla...