Nepal may have gotten rid of the royal family, but thankfully it hasn’t yet dispensed with another tradition: the child goddess who sounds like a duck.
If you are female, possess “the voice of a duck” and are between 2 and 4 years old, it could be just the job for you – Nepal is advertising for a new living goddess. Despite being revered as a powerful Hindu divinity, the Himalayan state’s Royal Kumari has no option but to step down once she reaches puberty. Because Preeti Shakya, the current holder of the centuries-old role, has reached her 11th birthday, the race is on to find a replacement before the end of the summer. … The job criteria are rigorous: Kumaris, who are typically selected as toddlers, must have a voice “as soft and clear as a duck’s”, “the body of a Banyan tree” and “the chest of a lion”. The 32 prerequisite physical “perfections” also include flawless skin, hair, eyes and teeth. A suitable horoscope is mandatory and being afraid of the dark is not allowed. There are perks: a Kumari can eat whatever she likes and act with impunity – at least her parents, who receive a small cash stipend, are not allowed to tell her off. For 240 years, before the abolition of Nepal’s monarchy in May after a Maoist uprising, the Royal Kumari was asked to approve the rule of the king.
Grounding a goddess wouldn’t work out all that well anyway, but one wonders whether parents of the goddess are at least allowed to say, “Just wait until you’re 11 …”
