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fatima完蛋了我萌了@_@
看来那篇BBB同人要改地方了@_@
格小子，等你回来俺们得讨论这个一下……
好消息是我非常非常地有爱了，坏消息是我想用英文写这篇了……
Not only does Nepal have many gods, goddess, deities, Bodhisattvas (near Buddhas), avatars and manifestations, which are worshipped and revered as statues, images, paintings and symbols, but it also has a real living goddess. The Kumari Devi is a young girl who lives in the building known as the Kumari Ghar, right beside Kathmandu's Durbar Square.
From time immemorial the practice of worshipping an ordinary pre-pubescent girl as a source of supreme power has been an integral part of both Hinduism and Buddhism, a tradition which continues even to this day virtually in every household. They call this girl Kumari Devi and worship her on all the religious occasions.
The predominance of the Kumari cult is more distinctly evident among the Newar community inside the Kathmandu Valley as she has become an inevitable feature of their worship almost in every Vihar and Bahal and including the nooks and corners of Newari settlements. However, it was the Vajrayana sect of Mahayana Buddhism that was responsible for establishing the tradition of worshipping a girl from the Sakya community as the royal Living Goddess.
The selection of the Living Goddess is a highly elaborate tantric ritual. Upon passing the preliminary test, this is merely concerned with their 32 attributes of perfection, including the colour of her eyes, the shape of her teeth and the sound of her voice. Her horoscope must also be appropriate. The 4 to 7 year poor girls from the Sakya community are made to confront a goddess in the darkened room. The sight of the Buffalo heads scattered around, the demon- like masked dancers, the terrifying noises theyencounter scare some of these innocent babies. The real goddess is unlikely to be frightened, so the one who is calm and collected throughout the tests is the only girl who is entitled to sit on the pedestal for worship as the Living Goddess. Then as a final test similar to that of the Dalai Lama, the Kumari then chooses items of clothing and decoration worn by her predecessor.
The god-house Kumari Ghar is a store-house of magnificent intricate carvings where the Living Goddess performs her daily rituals. During her tenure in the god-house, Guthi Sansthan, the government trust fund bears her entire expenses including that of her caretakers. Under normal circumstances, her days in the god-house come to an end with her first menstruation, but if she turns out to be unlucky, as they say, even a minor scratch on her body that bleeds can make her invalid for worship. She then changes back to the status of normal mortal and the search of a new Kumari begins. It is said to be unlucky to marry an ex-Kumari.
On Indra Jatra, in September, the Living Goddess in all her jeweled splendor travels through the older part of Kathmandu city in a three tiered chariot accompanied by Ganesh and Bhairab each day for three days. It is really a grand gala in which people in their thousands throng in and around the Kathmandu Durbar Square to pay their homage to the Living Goddess. During this festival she also blesses the King in keeping with the tradition in which the first king of the Shah dynasty, who annexed Kathmandu in 1768, received a blessing from the Living Goddess.
The Goddess as a Girl
The goddess Taleju Bhawani is an incarnation of the goddess Durga. More specifically, she is the goddess Durga in the form of the Kumari. Far from being the gentle goddess one might expect to take the form of a young girl, Durga is a fearsome deity, the Universal Mother of earth. Although Taleju is a Hindu goddess, Buddhists worship her as well, though the Vajrayana Buddhists know her as the Tantric goddess Vajradevi.
The Fearsome Durga
Traditionally depicted as a ten-armed woman astride a lion, wielding a wide array of deadly weapons, it is said that Durga prevails against demons. She is the Universal Mother, the creative energy that keeps the cosmos in motion. She is a manifestation of the shakti of Shiva himself, in the form of Parvati. Whilst normally she keeps her awful energy in reserve, or channels it as a positive creative force, when enraged, her power becomes a formidable destructive force. Similarly, whilst at the side of her lord Shiva, she is portrayed as calm and peaceful, her tantric energy is boundless, making her a demanding and exuberant sexual partner.
Protectress of Kathmandu
Taleju Bhawani is the historic patroness of the Nepalese monarchy and protectress of the Kathmandu valley. She was introduced as such in the fourteenth century, when Hari Singh Deva fled from India to Nepal, bringing the tradition with him. For this reason, the Kumari is even more important to the country in times of strife or of natural disasters, as the King must petition her on behalf of his people.
The Girl as a Goddess
A young girl is an excellent embodiment of Taleju Bhawani. Symoblically, she represents the creative energy of Durga held in check. The full force of her tantric energy remains latent, allowing her to channel her power as a creative rather than a destructive force. The girl's menstrual cycle symbolizes the unleashing of this force. To maintain tranquillity and peace, therefore, the goddess inhabits the body of another girl, keeping the force of her power at bay.
In Search of a Goddess
Once Taleju has left the sitting Kumari, there is a frenzy of activity to find her successor. Some have compared the selection process to the process used in nearby Tibet to find the Dalai Lama or the Panchen Lama. The selection process is conducted by five senior Buddhist Vajracharya priests, the Panch Buddha, the Bada Guruju or Chief Royal Priest, Achajau the priest of Taleju and the royal astrologer . The King and other religious leaders that might know of eligible candidates are also informed that a search is underway.
Eligible girls are Buddhists from the Newar Shakya caste of silver and goldsmiths. She must be in excellent health, never have shed blood or been afflicted by any diseases, be without blemish and must not have yet lost any teeth. Girls who pass these basic eligibility requirements are examined for the battis lakshanas, or 'thirty-two perfections' of a goddess. Some of these are poetically listed as such:
A neck like a conch shell
A body like a banyan tree
Eyelashes like a cow
Thighs like a deer
Chest like a lion
Voice soft and clear as a duck's
In addition to this, her hair and eyes should be very black, she should have dainty hands and feet, small and well-recessed sexual organs and a set of forty teeth.
The Tests of Divinity
The girl is also observed for signs of serenity and fearlessness (after all, she is to be the vessel of the fierce goddess Durga) and her horoscope is examined to ensure that it is complementary to the King's. It is important that there not be any conflicts as she must confirm the King's legitimacy each year of her divinity. Her family is also scrutinized to ensure its piety and devotion to the King.
Once the priests have chosen a candidate, she must undergo yet more rigorous tests to ensure that she indeed possesses the qualities necessary to be the living vessel of Durga. Her greatest test comes during the Hindu festival of Dashain. On the kalratri, or 'black night', 108 buffaloes and goats are sacrificed to the god Kali. The young candidate is taken into the Taleju temple and released into the courtyard, where the severed heads of the animals are illuminated by candlelight and masked men are dancing about. If the candidate truly possesses the qualities of Taleju, she shows no fear during this experience. If she does not, another candidate is brought in to attempt the same thing.
The fearless candidate has proven that she has the serenity and the fearlessness that typifies the goddess who is to inhabit her. Only a small test remains. She must be able to pick out the personal effects of the previous Kumari from an assortment of things laid out before. If she is able to do so, there is no remaining doubt that she is the chosen one.
Purification Rites
Once the Kumari is chosen, she must be purified so that she can be an unblemished vessel for Taleju. She is taken by the priests to undergo a number of secret Tantric rituals to cleanse her body and spirit of her past experiences. Once these rituals are completed, Taleju enters her and she is presented as the new Kumari. She is dressed and made up as a Kumari and then leaves the Taleju temple and walks across the square on a white cloth to the Kumari Ghar that will be her home for the duration of her divinity.
Life in a New World
Once the chosen girl completes the Tantric purification rites and crosses from the temple on a white cloth to the Kumari Ghar to assume her throne, her life takes on an entirely new character. She will leave her palace only on ceremonial occasions. Her family will visit her rarely, and then only in a formal capacity. She will neither work nor attend school. Her playmates will be drawn from a narrow pool of Newari children from her caste, usually the children of her caretakers. She will always be dressed in red, wear her hair in a topknot and have the agni chakchuu or ‘fire eye’ painted on her forehead as a symbol of her special powers of perception.
The Royal Kumari's new life is vastly different than the one to which she has been accustomed in her short life. Whilst her life is now free of material troubles, she has ceremonial duties to carry out. Although she is not ordered about, she is expected to behave as befits a goddess. She has shown the correct qualities during the selection process and her continued serenity is of paramount importance; an ill-tempered goddess is believed to portend bad tidings for those petitioning her.
Divine Feet
The Kumari's walk across the Durbar Square is the last time her feet will touch the ground until such time as the goddess departs from her body. From now on, when she ventures outside of her palace, she will be carried or transported in her golden palanquin. Her feet, like all of her, are now sacred. Petitioners will touch them, hoping to receive respite from troubles and illnesses. The King himself will kiss them each year when he comes to seek her blessing. She will never wear shoes; if her feet are covered at all, they will be covered with red stockings.
Hope for the Masses
The power of the Kumari is perceived to be so strong that even a glimpse of her is believed to bring good fortune. Crowds of people wait below the Kumari's window in the Kumari Chowk, or courtyard, of her palace, hoping that she will pass by the latticed windows on the third floor and glance down at them. Even though her irregular appearances last only a few seconds, the atmosphere in the courtyard is charged with devotion and awe when they do occur.
The more fortunate, or better connected, petitioners visit the Kumari in her chambers where she sits upon a gilded lion throne. Many of those visiting her are people suffering from blood or menstrual disorders since the Kumari is believed to have special power over such illnesses. She is also visited by bureaucrats and other government officials. Petitioners customarily bring gifts and food offerings to the Kumari, who receives them in silence. Upon arrival, she offers them her feet to touch or kiss as an act of devotion. During these audiences, the Kumari is closely watched. Here is how some of her actions are interpreted:
Action Portent
Crying or loud laughter Serious illness or death
Weeping or rubbing eyes Imminent death
Trembling Imprisonment
Hand clapping Reason to fear the King
Picking at food offerings Financial losses
If the Kumari remains silent and impassive throughout the audience, her devotees leave elated. This is the sign that their wishes have been granted.
Personal Life
Many people attend to the Kumari's needs. These people are known as the Kumarimi and are headed by the Chitaidar (patron). Their job is very difficult. They must attend to the Kumari's every need and desire whilst giving her instruction in her ceremonial duties. Whilst they cannot directly order her to do anything, they must guide her through her life. They are responsible for bathing her, dressing her and attending to her makeup as well as preparing her for her visitors and for ceremonial occasions. They must also take special care that the Kumari never falls or is cut — if she sheds blood, the spirit of Taleju leaves her and the search for a new Kumari must begin.
Traditionally, the Kumari received no education as she was widely considered to be omniscient. More recently, however, she has been visited by a tutor, as modernization has made it necessary for her to have an education once she re-enters mortal life. Her tutors, however, are unable to require her to do anything, so they must also find ways to interest her in applying herself to her studies.
Similarly, her limited playmates must learn to respect her. Since her every wish must be granted, they must learn to surrender to her whatever they have that she may want and to defer to her wishes in what games to play or activities to engage in.
Former goddess faces life
EYE-OPENER: After eight years of being worshipped and living a priviliged life inside a palace, Rashmilla Shakya was returned, illiterate, to her low-income family
REUTERS, KATHMANDU
Friday, Aug 29, 2003, Page 5
Twenty-two-year-old Rashmilla Shakya is like any other eager student in the crowded Kathmandu classroom, working towards a bachelor's degree in information technology.
Once in a while, though, people step aside and fold their hands together in respectful greeting as they recognize Nepal's former child goddess.
Rashmilla was four when she was taken from her home and enthroned as the Kumari, or virgin goddess, in an ancient three-storeyed palace with ornately carved balconies and window screens in Kathmandu's Durbar square.
For eight years, until she reached puberty, she was revered by both Hindus and Buddhists as the protector of 23 million Nepali people and the king in a tradition dating back to the 18th century.
Once she started menstruating, she lost her divine status and was returned to her family in a tiny, brick-and-mud house along an alley in a low-income Kathmandu neighborhood.
A five-year-old girl replaced her as the living goddess and Rashmilla, who could neither read nor write, started rebuilding her life from scratch.
The tradition of worshipping an ordinary girl as the source of supreme power has endured in the world's only Hindu kingdom, despite criticism from human rights activists.
"Rashmilla considers herself lucky," her elder sister, Pramilla, said in an interview in their home adorned by pictures of the living goddess.
"She says she has had two lives, being a Kumari was one life, and now she is born again."
A shy and smiling Rashmilla sat in another room, preparing for her computer-science class at Kathmandu's Institute of Science and Technology. She said her sister would speak on her behalf.
Critics argue it is cruel to take a child from her parents, deny her a childhood and then toss her back unprepared to handle the realities of life.
As a goddess, Rashmilla lived a life of extreme privilege, but also a life of isolation.
She could leave her palace only a few times a year to be wheeled through the capital on a chariot pulled by devotees.
The Kumari must wear red all the time, her hair is tied tightly in a topknot -- which permanently damages her hairline -- and she has a mythical third eye painted on her forehead to ward off evil spirits.
Rashmilla's playmates were children of the family that took care of her in the palace.
"The Kumarighar became her home," said Pramilla, who is a college physics lecturer, referring to the house of the goddess.
"She was completely adapted, the caretakers were her family." The selection of the goddess, who must come from the Shakya Buddhist clan, is an elaborate process of secret rituals.
"No girl is forced to become a Kumari," said Mukunda Raj Aryal, who teaches indigenous culture in Kathmandu's Tribhuvan University.
"This is part of Nepali culture where even parents compete to give daughters as Kumaris."
There were three other candidates, but Rashmilla was chosen after her horoscope matched that of then king Birendra, who was later killed by his drunken son in a palace massacre in 2001.
"We had mixed feelings when she was going. She was too small to remember anything," said Pramilla.
A tutor came to teach Rashmilla but he was too scared to order her to study. When she "retired" at 12, she started school in grade 1. Other 12-year-olds were in grade four.
Leather -- which comes from cows, which are considered sacred -- is not allowed anywhere in the palace, and Pramilla recalls how her sister recoiled in horror the first time she had to wear shoes to school.
"She is strong inside -- she told herself `the only way I can get over this is to wear it'."
Rashmilla will get a lifetime pension of 3,000 Nepali rupees (US$40) a month from the government. The pension used to be 300 rupees until the age of 21.
A child-rights activist said conditions for the kumaris, past and present, had improved after criticism.
"Human rights became an issue about 12 years ago," said Gauri Pradhan, head of the Child Workers group in Nepal. "Most of the concerns have been met, they are getting an education, friends and families can now meet them."
看来那篇BBB同人要改地方了@_@
格小子，等你回来俺们得讨论这个一下……
好消息是我非常非常地有爱了，坏消息是我想用英文写这篇了……
Not only does Nepal have many gods, goddess, deities, Bodhisattvas (near Buddhas), avatars and manifestations, which are worshipped and revered as statues, images, paintings and symbols, but it also has a real living goddess. The Kumari Devi is a young girl who lives in the building known as the Kumari Ghar, right beside Kathmandu's Durbar Square.
From time immemorial the practice of worshipping an ordinary pre-pubescent girl as a source of supreme power has been an integral part of both Hinduism and Buddhism, a tradition which continues even to this day virtually in every household. They call this girl Kumari Devi and worship her on all the religious occasions.
The predominance of the Kumari cult is more distinctly evident among the Newar community inside the Kathmandu Valley as she has become an inevitable feature of their worship almost in every Vihar and Bahal and including the nooks and corners of Newari settlements. However, it was the Vajrayana sect of Mahayana Buddhism that was responsible for establishing the tradition of worshipping a girl from the Sakya community as the royal Living Goddess.
The selection of the Living Goddess is a highly elaborate tantric ritual. Upon passing the preliminary test, this is merely concerned with their 32 attributes of perfection, including the colour of her eyes, the shape of her teeth and the sound of her voice. Her horoscope must also be appropriate. The 4 to 7 year poor girls from the Sakya community are made to confront a goddess in the darkened room. The sight of the Buffalo heads scattered around, the demon- like masked dancers, the terrifying noises theyencounter scare some of these innocent babies. The real goddess is unlikely to be frightened, so the one who is calm and collected throughout the tests is the only girl who is entitled to sit on the pedestal for worship as the Living Goddess. Then as a final test similar to that of the Dalai Lama, the Kumari then chooses items of clothing and decoration worn by her predecessor.
The god-house Kumari Ghar is a store-house of magnificent intricate carvings where the Living Goddess performs her daily rituals. During her tenure in the god-house, Guthi Sansthan, the government trust fund bears her entire expenses including that of her caretakers. Under normal circumstances, her days in the god-house come to an end with her first menstruation, but if she turns out to be unlucky, as they say, even a minor scratch on her body that bleeds can make her invalid for worship. She then changes back to the status of normal mortal and the search of a new Kumari begins. It is said to be unlucky to marry an ex-Kumari.
On Indra Jatra, in September, the Living Goddess in all her jeweled splendor travels through the older part of Kathmandu city in a three tiered chariot accompanied by Ganesh and Bhairab each day for three days. It is really a grand gala in which people in their thousands throng in and around the Kathmandu Durbar Square to pay their homage to the Living Goddess. During this festival she also blesses the King in keeping with the tradition in which the first king of the Shah dynasty, who annexed Kathmandu in 1768, received a blessing from the Living Goddess.
The Goddess as a Girl
The goddess Taleju Bhawani is an incarnation of the goddess Durga. More specifically, she is the goddess Durga in the form of the Kumari. Far from being the gentle goddess one might expect to take the form of a young girl, Durga is a fearsome deity, the Universal Mother of earth. Although Taleju is a Hindu goddess, Buddhists worship her as well, though the Vajrayana Buddhists know her as the Tantric goddess Vajradevi.
The Fearsome Durga
Traditionally depicted as a ten-armed woman astride a lion, wielding a wide array of deadly weapons, it is said that Durga prevails against demons. She is the Universal Mother, the creative energy that keeps the cosmos in motion. She is a manifestation of the shakti of Shiva himself, in the form of Parvati. Whilst normally she keeps her awful energy in reserve, or channels it as a positive creative force, when enraged, her power becomes a formidable destructive force. Similarly, whilst at the side of her lord Shiva, she is portrayed as calm and peaceful, her tantric energy is boundless, making her a demanding and exuberant sexual partner.
Protectress of Kathmandu
Taleju Bhawani is the historic patroness of the Nepalese monarchy and protectress of the Kathmandu valley. She was introduced as such in the fourteenth century, when Hari Singh Deva fled from India to Nepal, bringing the tradition with him. For this reason, the Kumari is even more important to the country in times of strife or of natural disasters, as the King must petition her on behalf of his people.
The Girl as a Goddess
A young girl is an excellent embodiment of Taleju Bhawani. Symoblically, she represents the creative energy of Durga held in check. The full force of her tantric energy remains latent, allowing her to channel her power as a creative rather than a destructive force. The girl's menstrual cycle symbolizes the unleashing of this force. To maintain tranquillity and peace, therefore, the goddess inhabits the body of another girl, keeping the force of her power at bay.
In Search of a Goddess
Once Taleju has left the sitting Kumari, there is a frenzy of activity to find her successor. Some have compared the selection process to the process used in nearby Tibet to find the Dalai Lama or the Panchen Lama. The selection process is conducted by five senior Buddhist Vajracharya priests, the Panch Buddha, the Bada Guruju or Chief Royal Priest, Achajau the priest of Taleju and the royal astrologer . The King and other religious leaders that might know of eligible candidates are also informed that a search is underway.
Eligible girls are Buddhists from the Newar Shakya caste of silver and goldsmiths. She must be in excellent health, never have shed blood or been afflicted by any diseases, be without blemish and must not have yet lost any teeth. Girls who pass these basic eligibility requirements are examined for the battis lakshanas, or 'thirty-two perfections' of a goddess. Some of these are poetically listed as such:
A neck like a conch shell
A body like a banyan tree
Eyelashes like a cow
Thighs like a deer
Chest like a lion
Voice soft and clear as a duck's
In addition to this, her hair and eyes should be very black, she should have dainty hands and feet, small and well-recessed sexual organs and a set of forty teeth.
The Tests of Divinity
The girl is also observed for signs of serenity and fearlessness (after all, she is to be the vessel of the fierce goddess Durga) and her horoscope is examined to ensure that it is complementary to the King's. It is important that there not be any conflicts as she must confirm the King's legitimacy each year of her divinity. Her family is also scrutinized to ensure its piety and devotion to the King.
Once the priests have chosen a candidate, she must undergo yet more rigorous tests to ensure that she indeed possesses the qualities necessary to be the living vessel of Durga. Her greatest test comes during the Hindu festival of Dashain. On the kalratri, or 'black night', 108 buffaloes and goats are sacrificed to the god Kali. The young candidate is taken into the Taleju temple and released into the courtyard, where the severed heads of the animals are illuminated by candlelight and masked men are dancing about. If the candidate truly possesses the qualities of Taleju, she shows no fear during this experience. If she does not, another candidate is brought in to attempt the same thing.
The fearless candidate has proven that she has the serenity and the fearlessness that typifies the goddess who is to inhabit her. Only a small test remains. She must be able to pick out the personal effects of the previous Kumari from an assortment of things laid out before. If she is able to do so, there is no remaining doubt that she is the chosen one.
Purification Rites
Once the Kumari is chosen, she must be purified so that she can be an unblemished vessel for Taleju. She is taken by the priests to undergo a number of secret Tantric rituals to cleanse her body and spirit of her past experiences. Once these rituals are completed, Taleju enters her and she is presented as the new Kumari. She is dressed and made up as a Kumari and then leaves the Taleju temple and walks across the square on a white cloth to the Kumari Ghar that will be her home for the duration of her divinity.
Life in a New World
Once the chosen girl completes the Tantric purification rites and crosses from the temple on a white cloth to the Kumari Ghar to assume her throne, her life takes on an entirely new character. She will leave her palace only on ceremonial occasions. Her family will visit her rarely, and then only in a formal capacity. She will neither work nor attend school. Her playmates will be drawn from a narrow pool of Newari children from her caste, usually the children of her caretakers. She will always be dressed in red, wear her hair in a topknot and have the agni chakchuu or ‘fire eye’ painted on her forehead as a symbol of her special powers of perception.
The Royal Kumari's new life is vastly different than the one to which she has been accustomed in her short life. Whilst her life is now free of material troubles, she has ceremonial duties to carry out. Although she is not ordered about, she is expected to behave as befits a goddess. She has shown the correct qualities during the selection process and her continued serenity is of paramount importance; an ill-tempered goddess is believed to portend bad tidings for those petitioning her.
Divine Feet
The Kumari's walk across the Durbar Square is the last time her feet will touch the ground until such time as the goddess departs from her body. From now on, when she ventures outside of her palace, she will be carried or transported in her golden palanquin. Her feet, like all of her, are now sacred. Petitioners will touch them, hoping to receive respite from troubles and illnesses. The King himself will kiss them each year when he comes to seek her blessing. She will never wear shoes; if her feet are covered at all, they will be covered with red stockings.
Hope for the Masses
The power of the Kumari is perceived to be so strong that even a glimpse of her is believed to bring good fortune. Crowds of people wait below the Kumari's window in the Kumari Chowk, or courtyard, of her palace, hoping that she will pass by the latticed windows on the third floor and glance down at them. Even though her irregular appearances last only a few seconds, the atmosphere in the courtyard is charged with devotion and awe when they do occur.
The more fortunate, or better connected, petitioners visit the Kumari in her chambers where she sits upon a gilded lion throne. Many of those visiting her are people suffering from blood or menstrual disorders since the Kumari is believed to have special power over such illnesses. She is also visited by bureaucrats and other government officials. Petitioners customarily bring gifts and food offerings to the Kumari, who receives them in silence. Upon arrival, she offers them her feet to touch or kiss as an act of devotion. During these audiences, the Kumari is closely watched. Here is how some of her actions are interpreted:
Action Portent
Crying or loud laughter Serious illness or death
Weeping or rubbing eyes Imminent death
Trembling Imprisonment
Hand clapping Reason to fear the King
Picking at food offerings Financial losses
If the Kumari remains silent and impassive throughout the audience, her devotees leave elated. This is the sign that their wishes have been granted.
Personal Life
Many people attend to the Kumari's needs. These people are known as the Kumarimi and are headed by the Chitaidar (patron). Their job is very difficult. They must attend to the Kumari's every need and desire whilst giving her instruction in her ceremonial duties. Whilst they cannot directly order her to do anything, they must guide her through her life. They are responsible for bathing her, dressing her and attending to her makeup as well as preparing her for her visitors and for ceremonial occasions. They must also take special care that the Kumari never falls or is cut — if she sheds blood, the spirit of Taleju leaves her and the search for a new Kumari must begin.
Traditionally, the Kumari received no education as she was widely considered to be omniscient. More recently, however, she has been visited by a tutor, as modernization has made it necessary for her to have an education once she re-enters mortal life. Her tutors, however, are unable to require her to do anything, so they must also find ways to interest her in applying herself to her studies.
Similarly, her limited playmates must learn to respect her. Since her every wish must be granted, they must learn to surrender to her whatever they have that she may want and to defer to her wishes in what games to play or activities to engage in.
Former goddess faces life
EYE-OPENER: After eight years of being worshipped and living a priviliged life inside a palace, Rashmilla Shakya was returned, illiterate, to her low-income family
REUTERS, KATHMANDU
Friday, Aug 29, 2003, Page 5
Twenty-two-year-old Rashmilla Shakya is like any other eager student in the crowded Kathmandu classroom, working towards a bachelor's degree in information technology.
Once in a while, though, people step aside and fold their hands together in respectful greeting as they recognize Nepal's former child goddess.
Rashmilla was four when she was taken from her home and enthroned as the Kumari, or virgin goddess, in an ancient three-storeyed palace with ornately carved balconies and window screens in Kathmandu's Durbar square.
For eight years, until she reached puberty, she was revered by both Hindus and Buddhists as the protector of 23 million Nepali people and the king in a tradition dating back to the 18th century.
Once she started menstruating, she lost her divine status and was returned to her family in a tiny, brick-and-mud house along an alley in a low-income Kathmandu neighborhood.
A five-year-old girl replaced her as the living goddess and Rashmilla, who could neither read nor write, started rebuilding her life from scratch.
The tradition of worshipping an ordinary girl as the source of supreme power has endured in the world's only Hindu kingdom, despite criticism from human rights activists.
"Rashmilla considers herself lucky," her elder sister, Pramilla, said in an interview in their home adorned by pictures of the living goddess.
"She says she has had two lives, being a Kumari was one life, and now she is born again."
A shy and smiling Rashmilla sat in another room, preparing for her computer-science class at Kathmandu's Institute of Science and Technology. She said her sister would speak on her behalf.
Critics argue it is cruel to take a child from her parents, deny her a childhood and then toss her back unprepared to handle the realities of life.
As a goddess, Rashmilla lived a life of extreme privilege, but also a life of isolation.
She could leave her palace only a few times a year to be wheeled through the capital on a chariot pulled by devotees.
The Kumari must wear red all the time, her hair is tied tightly in a topknot -- which permanently damages her hairline -- and she has a mythical third eye painted on her forehead to ward off evil spirits.
Rashmilla's playmates were children of the family that took care of her in the palace.
"The Kumarighar became her home," said Pramilla, who is a college physics lecturer, referring to the house of the goddess.
"She was completely adapted, the caretakers were her family." The selection of the goddess, who must come from the Shakya Buddhist clan, is an elaborate process of secret rituals.
"No girl is forced to become a Kumari," said Mukunda Raj Aryal, who teaches indigenous culture in Kathmandu's Tribhuvan University.
"This is part of Nepali culture where even parents compete to give daughters as Kumaris."
There were three other candidates, but Rashmilla was chosen after her horoscope matched that of then king Birendra, who was later killed by his drunken son in a palace massacre in 2001.
"We had mixed feelings when she was going. She was too small to remember anything," said Pramilla.
A tutor came to teach Rashmilla but he was too scared to order her to study. When she "retired" at 12, she started school in grade 1. Other 12-year-olds were in grade four.
Leather -- which comes from cows, which are considered sacred -- is not allowed anywhere in the palace, and Pramilla recalls how her sister recoiled in horror the first time she had to wear shoes to school.
"She is strong inside -- she told herself `the only way I can get over this is to wear it'."
Rashmilla will get a lifetime pension of 3,000 Nepali rupees (US$40) a month from the government. The pension used to be 300 rupees until the age of 21.
A child-rights activist said conditions for the kumaris, past and present, had improved after criticism.
"Human rights became an issue about 12 years ago," said Gauri Pradhan, head of the Child Workers group in Nepal. "Most of the concerns have been met, they are getting an education, friends and families can now meet them."
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no subject
Date: 2007-01-08 12:17 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-01-08 12:29 am (UTC)PS: I added your journal link. ^^
no subject
Date: 2007-01-08 01:20 am (UTC)you added my journal link!!?
I have all my weird pictures in there......*ruffle*QoQ
............oh well, I don't think people would go there.=w=
where the hell did you get my journal from???
no subject
Date: 2007-01-08 01:23 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-01-08 01:26 am (UTC)Did you get my card yet?
no subject
Date: 2007-01-08 01:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-01-08 02:07 am (UTC)