kumari or living goddess of Nepal
The word kumari is derived from the sanskrit word kaumarya it means princess. In Nepal, a kumari is a prepubescent girl selected from the Shakya caste or Bajracharya clan of the Nepalese Newar community.
The first tale is of Jaya Prakash Malla, the last king of the Malla Dynasty. According to the legend, Goddess Taleju visited Jaya Prakash Malla’s chambers during night time as a beautiful woman. They would play Tripasa (a dice game). The goddess visited the king’s chamber every night on the condition that the king refrains speaking about their meetings to anyone.
One fateful evening, the king’s wife followed him to his chambers and inspected on his secret meetings with the goddess Taleju. The goddess became aware of the king’s wife and left furiously. Goddess Taleju told Jaya Prakash in his dream that she would reincarnate as a living goddess in children among the Shakya and Bajracharya community of Ratnawali. In his attempt to make amends with Goddess Taleju, Jaya Prakash Malla searched for children possessed by Taleju’s spirit and hence started the Kumari Goddess tradition. Jaya Prakash also built a house for Kumari to stay near the palace and named it “Kumari Ghar.”
A second myth about the origin of Kumari Goddess circles around King Trailokya. According to myth, Goddess Taleju and King Trailokya played Tripasa every night and discussed the welfare of the country. One night, Trailokya made sexual advances towards the Goddess and infuriated her. As punishment, Goddess stopped visiting the King’s place. Trailokya worshipped and pleaded for her return. Later, Goddess Taleju agreed to appear in the body of a virgin girl from the Shakya family. Hence, the Kumari Goddess cult was established.
. After being selected as a Kumari, a girl life changes entirely. She will leave her palace only for ceremonial purpose, her family will rarely visit on a formal capacity and her playmates will be from the caretaker’s family. The Kumari always wear red clothes, hair in a topknot and the fire eye painted on her forehead.
The Kumari’s walk in the Durbar Square is the last time her feet will touch the ground until the Goddess Taleju departs from her body. The Prime Minister and President touch the feet of Kumari and seek for a blessing. The Kumari is carried when visiting outside the palace in her golden palanquin.
A Kumari’s glimpse is believed to bring good fortune. Many people visit the courtyard in front of Kumari’s window to get a glance of the living goddess. The more fortunate and better-connected people visit the Kumari in her chambers. She sits upon a gilded iron throne. Many people who visit her are those suffering from illness and menstrual disorders. It is believed that Kumari has special powers over such illness. Bureaucrats and high ranked government officials also visit Kumari Goddess. During the visit, the actions of the living goddess are closely watched because her actions are interpreted as a prediction of the visitor’s life. Some actions and its meaning of Kumari Goddess are:
The process to find a living goddess is quite vast and has many criteria. Five senior Buddhist Bajracharya, Chief Royal Priest, Priest of Taleju and royal astrologer oversees the selection ritual of Kumari. Some basic characteristics searched in children are sound health, no evidence of scars and marks on the body, uncut and blemish body skin, pre-menstrual and no loss of teeth.
Once a girl passes through the basic requirements of Kumari Goddess, she is then further examined for “Battis Lakshan” 32-body perfections to decide the future Kumari. Some of the characteristics of Battis Lakshan are:
The children also must not be scared of blood and masked man. Every child is shown several sacrificed buffalo and masked men dancing on top of the blood. If a child shows signs of fear, she is deemed not worthy of Goddess Taleju’s power. The girl that shows courage amidst the blood and dancing is then selected as the next incarnation of Goddess Taleju.
During the 8th day of Dashain, Kala-Ratri, the selection process of Kumari Goddess begins.
Kumari Goddess is the human symbol of power and protection. Kumari is the sole embodiment of pureness among Hindu and Buddhist followers. A Kumari must be in her pre-pubescent and should not have lost any drop of blood from her body. After the Kumari enters her adolescence and begins her first menstruation, she is considered impure, and the search of new Kumari starts.
In some cases, the title of Kumari is lost when the reigning Kumari suffers a cut and loses blood from her body. If a Kumari loses blood from her body, she becomes like any other humans and loses the power of Gods bestowed on her.
There are many Kumari Goddesses in Nepal indigenous to several locations and communities. Patan, Bhaktapur, Kathmandu, Bungamati and other Newar communities have their own Kumaris. The Kumari of Kathmandu is considered as the Royal Kumari, the supreme of all.
Trishna Shakya is the current Kumari of Kathmandu who took over from Matina Shakya on 27 September 2017. Trishna was just three years old when she was declared the new Kumari. She leaves behind her parents and a twin younger
brother to embark on the journey of living Goddess.