One of the unique aspects of Kathmandu Durbar Square is the presence of a “Living Goddess” who resides within one of the temples in Durbar Square. Our tour guide did his best to explain this tradition, but I still find it rather strange. Apparently since the mid-1700’s, there has been a Living Goddess in Kathmandu, always living within the Kumari Bahal Temple (translated to House of the Living Goddess). The Kimari Devi, or Living Goddess, is a young girl that is selected around the age of 3-4 years old from a Buddhist Nepalese family. She must fit a set list of thirty-two different criteria, including having the same birthday as the previous King, as well as the same horoscope. Once these children have been identified, they are then gathered together in a darkened room where terrifying noises are made, men dance by in horrific masks, and 108 buffalo heads are on display.
It is felt that a “true goddess” will not be frightened by such images; therefore, the child who retains the most composure during these terrors is crowned the next princess. It sounds like a rather horrific experience to put young children through…
Once the Living Goddess has been identified, she moves in to the Kumari Bahal Temple. She lives here until she comes of age (has her first menstrual period) or has any other serious accidental loss of blood. The Kumari Princess is permitted to leave the Temple only 13 times each year and has limited contact with her family. She comes to the window of the Kumari Bahal Temple a couple times per hour, so crazy tourists (like ourselves) can gawk at her and the interesting Nepali tradition.
It is strictly forbidden to take photos of the princess, and it is considered good luck to make eye contact with her. It seems a bit difficult to make eye contact, however, since she seemed to just stare in to one area of the courtyard for about one minute and then head back inside the temple… After the Kumari Princess has her first menstrual period, she is permitted to return to her family, at which point the search for a new Living Goddess is resumed. It is considered bad luck, however, to marry a prior Living Goddess (or just too difficult for the potential husband, who knows…), so the girls live with their families for the rest of their lives.
After visiting the Kumari Bahal Temple, our guide took us around to many different attractions in Durbar Square, including the “Hippie Temple,” the “Kama Sutra Temple,” and an enormous temple that was supposedly built with the wood from a single tree (I find this very difficult to believe…).
One of my favorite sites was a large stone carving of Bhairab, a fearsome verson of Lord Shiva. In this carving, Bhairab has six arms, wears a garland of skulls, and tramples a corpse, which is supposedly symbolic of human ignorance.
It is said that telling a lie while standing before Bhairab will bring instant death; therefore, it was once used as a form of trial by ordeal. The Kathmandu Police Station is now, ironically, located right across the street from the enormous statue.
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