KATMANDU, Nepal — Hindu and Buddhist priests chanted hymns and cascaded flowers and grains of rice over a 3-year-old who was appointed a living goddess in Nepal on Tuesday.
Matani Shakya, the new “kumari,” was carried from her parents’ home to a palatial temple in the heart of Katmandu, where she will live in near isolation until she reaches puberty and loses her divine status. She will be worshiped by Hindus and Buddhists as an incarnation of the powerful Hindu deity Taleju.
The goddess is chosen from 2- to 4-year-old girls of the impoverished Shakya goldsmith caste. As a final test, the living goddess must spend a night alone in a room among the heads of ritually slaughtered goats and buffalo without showing fear. Critics say the tradition violates both international and Nepalese laws on child rights. The Associated Press
