India, June 11 -- In the intense heat of summer, people look for relief wherever they can find it. Air conditioners, cold drinks and ice cream offer respite. Sometimes, comfort is found in words themselves. One such word is sheetal, which means cool in Hindi.

The word gives its name to Gurugram's presiding deity, Sheetla Mata. Shrines dedicated to this goddess are found across Delhi region, but Gurugram is home to the most important of them. The temple of Sheetla Mata proves that long before Gurugram became a Millennium City corporate hub, it was a place of pilgrimage.

The present temple building is modern, the traditions associated with it stretch back centuries. Sheetla Mata is revered as a healer of smallpox and other feverish illnes...