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Many kinds of superstitions can be found in areas when medical treatment wasn’t very accessible including dentistry. Every culture has some means to try to ease the great pain that comes with toothaches, whether it is through the use of a plant, prayers, a potion, or a patron saint. Among the pantheon of gods, there is a Waa Shya Dya for curing toothaches. In the city of Kathmandu, a peculiar tree is used in a last-ditch effort to alleviate the agony of untreated toothache.
Waa Shya Dya, or the Toothache Tree, is a piece of wood that rests in an unremarkable chowk just past Thahiti Tole. The block of wood that has been placed in the midst of Kathmandu’s dentistry area, which is home to a concentration of orthodontists’ clinics, is said to be cut from the legendary tree known as Bangemudha.
When someone has a toothache, it is thought that hammering a coin to the piece of wood will help them heal. Nailing coins at this shrine has traditional values, and in modern times, the wooded idol has been covered with so many coins that it is hard to identify the true surface of the wooden idol. Even now, when technology has taken over our lives, hundreds of devotees visit to worship the Tooth God in the hope that it may relieve their pain. This is the finest example of Nepali mythology and culture coming together.
The temple is believed to be a healing centre for all types of dental problems. When a local has a toothache, he or she will come here and pray for the pain to go away. It is a custom carried on since the time of their ancestors. The locals nevertheless make a point of visiting this place before visiting a real dentist if they have a toothache. Once they have finished praying, a coin is nailed onto the log of wood.
A dental cluster has opened up around Waa Shya Dev, with every dentist who is competent has opened their clinic at the chowk where the temple stands. Not only dentists, but also orthodontists, have set up shops in the region in case the prayers fail. According to the ward office, there are currently more than 20 dental clinics, some of which have been offering services since the Rana period and have been serving as dentists for three generations.
Do visit the Waa Shya Dev if you have toothache, and even if you don't, go see the Danteswori Devi which is a part of our folklore, religion and history.
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