The institution of the Kumari is part of Nepali tradition that was formed seven centuries ago. It centers around Taleju, a Hindu goddess who advised a king. When the king tried to assault her at one meeting, he infuriated the goddess, causing her to stop visiting the king. Later, after the king pleaded for her to return, she said that she would “appear in the body of a virgin girl from the Shakya family”.
Most Kumari end up struggling to survive after retiring from being the goddess. What sets Chanira Bajracharya, who was the Kumari in the early 2000’s, apart from her predecessors is that she was able to receive a formal education during her time as the Kumari, enabling her to get a job after retirement.
Recently, she has been “working to change the perception of Kumari”, helping other Kumari study and even tutoring her successor, Nihira Bajracharya. She also believes that providing the Kumari with an education can help counter critics’ beliefs that the institution “deprives girls of their childhoods and human rights”.
The selection process for a Kumari is very complicated. First, the young girls, who could be as young as two years old, are examined. Whichever girls show “the 32 perfections of the goddess” would then be tested by the selection committee. The committee would them examine “[h]er family’s reputation for piety”, and then test for the “calmness and fearlessness in the girl”.
This test occurs on the eighth night of the Danshain festival, known as the night of Kalratri. The girls must pass through a room with buffalos and goats that have been sacrificed to the goddess. If she remains calm, then she becomes the next Kumari.
Many Buddhist cultures have a similar system; for example, Tibet has a reincarnation system with a Living Buddha. However, there is a key difference between the Tibetan Dalai Lama and the Nepali Kumari. While the Dalai Lama is worshipped for his whole life, the Kumari’s reign ends once the girl gets her first period.
Even though the tradition of the kumari is an important part of Nepali culture, the reforms made to give the ex-goddesses assistance in navigating life are equally important.
Link to Article:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1658071507605x158707623584724900/Ex-Goddess%20Works%20to%20Reform%20700-Year%20Tradition.%20Her%20M.B.A.%20Helps.%20-%20The%20New%20York%20Times.pdf
Most Kumari end up struggling to survive after retiring from being the goddess. What sets Chanira Bajracharya, who was the Kumari in the early 2000’s, apart from her predecessors is that she was able to receive a formal education during her time as the Kumari, enabling her to get a job after retirement.
Recently, she has been “working to change the perception of Kumari”, helping other Kumari study and even tutoring her successor, Nihira Bajracharya. She also believes that providing the Kumari with an education can help counter critics’ beliefs that the institution “deprives girls of their childhoods and human rights”.
The selection process for a Kumari is very complicated. First, the young girls, who could be as young as two years old, are examined. Whichever girls show “the 32 perfections of the goddess” would then be tested by the selection committee. The committee would them examine “[h]er family’s reputation for piety”, and then test for the “calmness and fearlessness in the girl”.
This test occurs on the eighth night of the Danshain festival, known as the night of Kalratri. The girls must pass through a room with buffalos and goats that have been sacrificed to the goddess. If she remains calm, then she becomes the next Kumari.
Many Buddhist cultures have a similar system; for example, Tibet has a reincarnation system with a Living Buddha. However, there is a key difference between the Tibetan Dalai Lama and the Nepali Kumari. While the Dalai Lama is worshipped for his whole life, the Kumari’s reign ends once the girl gets her first period.
Even though the tradition of the kumari is an important part of Nepali culture, the reforms made to give the ex-goddesses assistance in navigating life are equally important.
Link to Article:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1658071507605x158707623584724900/Ex-Goddess%20Works%20to%20Reform%20700-Year%20Tradition.%20Her%20M.B.A.%20Helps.%20-%20The%20New%20York%20Times.pdf
