Nepal has many goddess temples in which the living goddess Kumari lives. They wear red uniforms, their faces are painted with special makeup, and their faces are expressionless.
"Living Goddess" Samita Bajiracharya
The Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, a small poor country bordering the southwestern territory of China, has caused a tourism boom in the past few years because of its pristine undeveloped landscapes, but Nepal's economy has not improved due to long-term illness.
Nepal location
It is said that the more miserable the life, the more the religion develops, because people desperately desire the power of faith, and Nepal is such a place where almost the whole country believes in religion.
In the local colloquial language, the living goddess is called Kumari, which means virgin goddess. The virgin god must be holy and immaculate, untainted by earthly distractions, with an angelic face and a spiritual presence.
The crazy Nepalese project this imagination of the gods into reality — they screen the virgin gods on earth according to this criterion.
Kumari is the protector of the city, and there are Kumari in many large cities.
Kumari is chosen from a large number of young female children who participate in the election, every 10 years.
Nepalese people are very reverent and worshipful of Kumari.
Both the former king and the current president must pay homage to Kumari and pray that she will have a red auspicious mole on her forehead that represents a blessing.
The goddess Kumari nodded to send blessings
In the 1980s, when it came time to select the goddess Kumari, hundreds of families sent their daughters to the clergy to compete for the position of glory and abundance. But by 2001, when the royal clergy began looking for candidates again, only five families were willing to send their daughters out for selection.
The selection of new "living goddesses" was carried out by the royal priests, and the process was both mysterious and unique. The "living goddess" must come from the Shakyamuni family of Buddha Shakyamuni, and the ancestors must live on the banks of the two holy rivers in Kathmandu, the Bagmati And The Weisnutti, from innocent origins, without any stains. She must possess thirty-two virtues, without any blemishes, let alone bloodshed, even if she is scratched.
Selection requirements for the "living goddess" of Nepal:
1. The "living goddess" candidate girl must be extremely healthy, never sick, bleeding, without any spots on her body, and without any teeth.
2. The candidate girl of the "living goddess" must have 32 characteristics at the same time, such as a neck shining like a shell, a body as straight as a linden tree, eyelashes as sharp as the eyelashes of a cow, straight legs like a deer, eyes and hair must be black and shiny, and hands and feet must be slender and beautiful.
3. The "living goddess" candidate girl must have an extraordinary calmness and fearlessness, and her constellation must match the king.
Most of the girls who run for Kumari are around 3 or 4 years old, which is the age of liveliness and activity.
Kumari's life is boring and tedious, you need to sit for a long time, and to become a girl of Kumari, you must be able to sit still and endure loneliness.
After layers of selection, there will be a few candidates left.
In the end, the supreme leader of the country elected the one who was most beneficial to the country to become Kumari.
After becoming Kumari, the girl will leave her home and come to live in the temple, and the last Kumari girl who came to the first menstruation will leave.
Under normal circumstances, Kumari's parents could not live with their daughter in the temple of the Goddess, and could only visit occasionally.
The sisters in the family can go to the temple and play with Kumari.
Today, the Kumari system has also changed. Some of Kumari's family would live with Kumari in the Temple of the Goddess and help take care of all of Kumari's activities.
everyday life
After coming to the Temple of the Goddess, Kumari could only leave the Temple when she needed to go out on major festivals, and the rest of the time she had to stay in the temple's house.
Kumari's feet cannot touch the ground, and when she goes out, she must be carried by someone or sit on an exclusive transportation.
Every morning, Kumari would get up early, put on a specific costume, paint a "fire eye" on her forehead, and accept people's worship.
At certain times, the window of the residence will appear for believers and tourists to admire.
Kumari also has a special time to meet believers every day.
Believers would usually bring offerings or money and ask Kumari to bless them. Kumari would use a special dye to light a red auspicious mole on the forehead of the believer.
When Kumari is receiving worship or receiving believers, she will sit upright on her own throne, her feet in the basin in front of her, and her face will usually be expressionless.
In the eyes of believers, as a living goddess, Kumari' words and deeds, every move, will herald auspiciousness.
One day in 2001, a "living goddess" Kumari suddenly cried incessantly, and her mother couldn't coax her.
This Kumari cried for 4 whole days. On the 4th day, the Nepalese royal family suffered a massacre that shocked the world.
The official narrative of the massacre is that the king and queen of Nepal did not agree to Crown Prince Dipendra marrying his beloved woman, and Dipendra held a grudge.
At a family banquet, Dipendra shot and killed more than a dozen royal families, including all of his family.
Then Crown Prince Dipendra shot himself again, and the king died clean.
However, the people of Nepal did not agree with this statement, and confusion ensued.
After the tragedy, Kumari stopped crying.
Kumari's move made people more convinced that she had the ability to herald the auspicious. Kumari's every move was at stake. Therefore, when in front of the public, Kumari will be asked to be expressionless, and unnecessary movements are not allowed.
Kumari's life was free, boring, and contrary to the nature of the child.
Rapunzel on the tower had a handsome prince to help her out of her cage, and the living goddesses in the temple were only watched by countless devotees who regarded them as the embodiment of the gods, so the young goddesses developed the habit of expressionless and immobile, as if they were really the noble gods.
After layoffs
Usually Kumari would have menarche around eleven or twelve. After menarche, he changed from a living goddess to a mortal. But because they have been enshrined for 10 years, basically a lot of their abilities have been lost, so after abdication, it is difficult for them to integrate into normal life, and even unable to support themselves. At this time, the government will give them a monthly subsidy of 3,000 rubles, which is only a drop in the bucket.
There will be a younger, fresher maiden who will inherit her mantle, take her place, and become a new generation of living goddesses, after which the abandoned and former gods will begin to face the cruel life unexpectedly.
Laid-off living goddesses are often faced with extremely embarrassing situations when they are sent home, although their families have beaten gongs and drums to encourage their daughters to become the embodiment of gods and glory for the family, but after many years, they are also unable to face girls who have no strength and cannot marry.
There are even rumors that any man who marries a girl who has been a "living goddess" will die of illness within half a year. Therefore, many "living goddesses" are forced to be lonely for life after retirement, even if some girls insist on studying and working on their own when they grow up, they will be frustrated and disliked because of their former identity.
Legend of the source of the living goddess
It is said that during the 16th century Maratha Dynasty, there was a goddess in Nepal called Tarezhu, who had a heavenly eye on her forehead, which could see some evil things in the world, and had ten arms behind her to protect the people.
As long as she is there, it can always be peaceful and stable, the wind and rain are smooth, and people love her very much. However, because the goddess is too honorable, ordinary people are not allowed to see her appearance, except for the king.
Because the goddess was so bored in the palace, the king would often accompany her to play a game of craps. One day, the queen was very curious to find out that the king always went to the palace alone, so she quietly followed him to find out.
So I accidentally saw the face of the goddess. The goddess was furious and said that she would henceforth no longer guard the people and would sin against them. The king was horrified and fell to his knees and begged the goddess for forgiveness. In the end, the goddess saw that the king's face did not repent after all, and said that she would not appear again in the future, but would possess the little girl to protect the people. The king was grateful to Dade, and from then on there was a custom of finding a living goddess.
postscript
The most immature girls are regarded as the "goddesses" who bless the whole country, but they cannot have freedom and control life. They are forced to obey, but they are endowed with endless loneliness, and they use their vivid youth to witness their abandonment by the religion in which they believe.