Nepal bans former king from goddess ceremony

THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD

Goddesses ... Nepalese girls dressed as Kumari.

KATHMANDU: Nepal’s government has stopped the country’s deposed king from attending a traditional ceremony, the first time authorities have prevented the former monarch from taking part in a religious ceremony or making a public appearance.

The former king Gyanendra Shah was scheduled to be blessed by a girl who is revered as Nepal’s living goddess to mark the beginning of a festival season, something he had continued to do even after being dethroned in 2008.

A Home Ministry spokesman, Jayamukunda Khanal, said the decision was made for security reasons, but he refused to elaborate. Soldiers at the king’s residence refused to allow him to leave to attend the ceremony on Tuesday.

Mr Gyanendra was to be blessed by the Kumari, or living goddess, at the temple where she lives in Kathmandu. The blessing, which is made at the start of the Indra Jatra festival, is to help ensure prosperity for the king and his subjects.

The government decision was condemned by the former king’s supporters. Rajan Maharjan, a priest at the temple where the Kumari lives, accused the government of striking at tradition and religion.

”These evil forces are trying to hamper the tradition and our right to religion. Only the kings are allowed to start the ceremony,” he said.

The Kumari is a young girl chosen through a series of ancient ceremonies and worshipped by both Hindus and Buddhists in Nepal.

She is supposed to have perfect hair, eyes, teeth and skin, and have no scars, and cannot be afraid of the dark.

During the festival, the goddess is taken around Kathmandu in a chariot pulled by supporters.