The Kumari

Also known as Kumari Devi, or the Living Goddess. Kumari means young girl or unmarried in Sanskrit.

This is a uniquely Hindu & Buddhist practice. It’s primarily observed in Nepal & parts of adjacent India, which centers on the worship of a prepubescent girl as a living goddess & a manifestation of the divine feminine energy.

Shakti, the Indian religious worship monotheistic god’s multi-morphic avatar manifestation of genderless formless god into human forms including worshipping women as goddess in various forms such as worship of daughters as Kumari, wife as Lakshmi, women as skilled Saraswati & empowered Durga (who as Kali exterminates evil).

A key concept in Hinduism’s Shaktism tradition which venerates the feminine aspect of the genderless formless Absolute God Brahma. A Kumari is considered to be the living embodiment of the goddess Taleju Bhawani (a form of devi Durga), the venerable powerful manifestation of divine woman power, ingraining Hindus & Buddhists to treat their females, moms, sisters, wife, & daughters with respect as goddesses.

A Kumari is a prepubescent girl chosen from the Shakya clan of the Napali Newari Buddhist community. It’s believed that the girl is possessed by the goddess Taleju or Durga.

When her 1st period starts, it’s thought that the deity leaves her body. Serious illness or a major loss of blood from an injury also causes loss of deity. The chosen female child is typically worshipped from a prepubescent age, with her tenure as the divine vessel concluding with her 1st period, or a significant loss of blood (like from an injury). This signifies the departure of the goddess’s spirit.

The veneration of the young girl reflects the Hindu reverence for women as embodiments of the goddess. This girl is often chosen from the Newar Buddhist Shakya community, in the Kathmandu Valley.

There are several Kumaris throughout Nepal. Some cities have several, but the best known 1 is the Royal Kumari of Kathmandu. This particular Kumari lives in the Kumari Ghar, a palace in the center of the city.

The selection process for the Royal Kumari is especially rigorous. As of 2025, the Royal Kumari of Kathmandu is Aryatara Shakya, aged 2. She was selected in September 2025. Unika Bajracharya, was selected in April 2014 as the Kumari of Patan, is the 2nd most important living goddess.

The Kumari tradition is a particularly prevalent practice in the Kathmandu Valley. It is followed in the cities of Kathmandu, Lalitpur (a.k.a. Patan), Bhaktapur (a.k.a. Bhadgaun), Sankhu, & Bungamati.

This tradition is primarily rooted in the Malla Dynasty (12th-18th centuries), which ruled the Kathmandu Valley. The most prominent legend involves King Jaya Prakash Malla, the last Malla king of Kathmandu.

It’s said that the goddess Taleju would visit the king in his chamber to play a game of dice (tripasa). One night, the king looked at the goddess with lustful intent. Enraged, she disappeared, saying she wouldn’t ever return in her divine form. After the king begged for forgiveness, she agreed to return. But only by manifesting in a young, “pure” girl from the Shakya clan.

Historically, the Kumari was the source of a king’s right to rule. During the annual Indra Jatra festival, the king of Nepal would kneel before the Kumuri to get a tika (a forehead mark of blessing). Without this blessing, the king’s authority was considered spiritual void.

Even after the Shah dynasty overthrew the Mallas in 1768. Even after Nepal abolished its monarchy in 2008, the tradition persists, with the President of Nepal now receiving the blessing.

The word “Kumari” is derived from Sanskrit meaning “princess.” The festival is celebrated during Kumari Jatra, which follows the Indra Jatra religious ceremony. The procession is similar to Indra or Sakra, taking Indrani to his celestial home as his bride. The Kumari is also reversed & worshipped by some of Nepal’s Hindus.

The Kumari tradition is a rare bridge between Vajrayana Buddhism & Hinduism. The Kumari always chose the Newar community (the indigenous people of the Kathmandu Valley), specifically from the Shakya or Bajracharya class. Both of which are high-caste Buddhist lineages.

The worship of the goddess in a young girl represents the worship of divine consciousness spread over all creation. As the supreme goddess is thought to have manifested this entire cosmos out of her womb, she exists equally in animate as well as inanimate objects.

While worship of an idol represents the worship & recognition of supreme through inanimate materials, worship of a human represents veneration & recognition of the same supreme in conscious beings.

In the Shakta text Devi Mahatmyam, or Chandi, the goddess is said to have declared that she resides in all female living beings in this universe. The ritual of Kumari is based on this verse. But for the purpose of worshipping a goddess, a young girl is chosen over a mature woman because of her inherent purity & chastity.

The selection of a “Royal Kumari” (the most senior of the several Kumaris in the valley) is an exhaustive process led by high priests. The candidate must be between 3 & 5 years old & process the Battis Lakshan, or 32 physical perfections, which include:

• A neck like a conch shell
• Eyelashes like a cow
• Thighs like a deer
• A voice as clear as duck’s
• A body like a banyan tree
• Unblemished skin & no history of serious illness

During the festival of Dashain, the potential goddess must pass a “test of fearlessness.” She’s placed in a darkened room filled with the severed heads of 108 sacrificed buffaloes & goats. While men in masks dance & make terrifying noises. If the child stays calm & serene, it’s believed the spirit of Taleju has truly inhabited her.

Once chosen, the girl’s life changes immediately. She first moves into the Kumari Ghar. She must wear red, her hair is tied into a top knot, & a “fire eye” (agni chakchuu) is painted on her forehead. Her feet must never touch the “impure” ground. She’s carried on a palanquin or on the arms of her caretakers. While she grants darshan (divine glimpse) to followers, she has to stay expressionless. It’s believed that if she cries, laughs, or trembles, it portends disaster, illness, or death, for the person seeking the blessing.

Hindu scriptures, like the Jnanarnava Rudrayamala tantra, assigns names to a Kumari depending on her age:

• 1 year old: Sandhya, consort of Surya, the Sun god
• 2 years old: Saraswati, 1/3 part of the Tridevi
• 3 years old: Tridhamurti
• 4 years old: Kalika, a.k.a. Kali, consort of Shiva
• 5 years old: Subhaga
• 6 years old: Parvati/Uma, 1/3 part of the Tridevi
• 7 years old: Malini
• 8 years old: Kubjika
• 9 years old: Kaalasandarbha
• 10 years old: Aparajita
• 11 years old: Rudrani, consort of Rudra
• 12 years old: Bhairavi, 1 of the 10 avatars of the mother goddess
• 13 years old: Mahalakshmi, 1/3 part of the Tridevi
• 14 years old: Pithanayika
• 15 years old: Kshetragya
• 16 years old: Ambika, form of the supreme goddess of Hinduism

In Nepal, Kumaris are only worshipped for a day. The above names are only assigned while the ritual lasts, often a few hours. Usually one can’t be a Kumari after 16 years old because of their 1st period(s). In Bungamati, the Kumari reigns until her 1st baby teeth/tooth falls out.

Even today, a mom’s dream of a red serpent is believed to be an omen of her daughter’s future position as the Royal Kumari. The power of the Kumari is perceived to be strong that even a glimpse of her is thought to bring good fortune.

Crowds of people wait below the Kumari’s window in the Kumari Chowk, or courtyard, of her palace, hoping that she’ll pass by & glace down at them.

Some petitioners visit the Kumari in her chambers, where she sits on a gilded lion throne. Many visiting her are people suffering from blood or menstrual disorders since the Kumari is believed to have special power over such illnesses.

Petitioners usually bring gifts & food offerings to the Kumari, who gets them in silence. Upon arrival, the Kumari offers the petitioners her feet to touch, or kiss, as an act of devotion. During these audiences, the Kumari is watched closely.

Her actions interpreted as a prediction of the petitioners’ lives, such as:

• Crying or loud laughter: Serious illness or death
• Weeping or rubbing eyes: Impending death
• Trembling: Imprisonment
• Hand clapping: Reason to fear the king
• Picking at food offering: Financial losses

If the Kumari stays quiet & impassive throughout the audience, her followers leave elated.

Traditionally, the Kumari received no formal, mainstream education. This is because she’s widely considered to be omniscient. Modernization has made it necessary for her to have an education because she re-enters mortal life.

Kumaris are now allowed to attend public school & have a life inside the classroom that’s no different from that of other students. Many kumaris, like the Kumari of Bhaktapur, attend school. Others, like the main Kumari in Kathmandu, get their education through private tutors.

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Trimurti

This is the triple deity of supreme divinity in Hinduism, in which the cosmic functions of creation, preservation, & destruction are personified as a triad of deities. Usually, they’re Brahma the creator, Vishnu the preserver, & Shiva the destroyer. The word “trimurti” means “3 forms.”

The Om symbol of Hinduism is considered to have an allusion or the Trimurti, where the A, the U, & the M phonemes of the word are considered to indicate creation, preservation, & destruction. Adding up to represent Brahman.

There’s a difference between Brahman (with an ‘n’), which refers to Ultimate Reality & Brahma (without the ‘n’), which refers to the creator god.

According to the Shaiva Agama, Shavities believe that Shiva performs 5 actions: creation, preservation, dissolution, grace, & illusion. The first 3 actions are associated with Shiva as Sadyojata (akin to Brahma), Vamadeva (akin to Vishnu), & Aghora (akin to Rudra).

Braham, Vishnu, & Rudra aren’t deities different from Shiva. But rather forms of Shiva. As Brahma/Sadyojata, Shiva creates. As Vishnu/Vamadeva, Shiva preserves. As Rudra/Aghora, Shiva dissolves. Shiva is the supreme god & performs all actions, destruction is only but 1. Ergo, the Trimurti is a form of Shiva himself for Shaivas.

Shaivites believe that Shiva is the supreme. Shiva assumes various critical roles & assumes appropriate names & forms, also stands transcending all these.

Despite the fact that the Vishnu Parana describes that Vishnu manifest as Brahma in order to create & as Rudra (Shiva) in order to destroy.

Vaishnavism generally doesn’t acknowledge the Trimurti concept. Instead, they believe in the avatars of Vishnu like Narashimha, Rama, Krishna, etc.

Also they believe that Shiva & Brahma are both forms of Vishnu. The Dvaita school, for example, holds Vishnu alone to be the supreme god. Shiva is the subordinate & interprets the Puranas differently.

Vijayindra Tirtha, a Dvaita scholar, interprets the 18 Puranas differently. He interprets the Vaishnavite puranas as satvic & Shaivite Puranas as tumasic. Only the satvic Puranas are considered authoritative.

Satvic is 1 of the 3 gunas (modes of existence). This is the quality of goodness, purity, positivity, truth, serenity, balance, peacefulness, & virtuousness. Tamasic is another of the 3 gunas. This is the quality of inertia, inactivity, dullness, or lethargy.

Sri Vaishnavism tradition, in the south, holds that all major deities that are hailed in the puranas are in fact forms of Vishnu & that the Scriptures are dedicated to him alone.

The female-centric denomination of Shaktidharma puts the dominant roles of the 3 forms (Trimurti) of the Supreme Divinity not to the male gods. But to the female goddesses: Mahasarasvati (Creatrix), Mahalaxmi (Preservatrix), & Mahakali (Destructrix).

This girl version of the Trimurti is called Tridevi (“3 goddesses”). The boy gods (Brahma, Vishnu, & Shiva) are then relegated as auxiliary agents of the supreme feminine Tridevi.

Smartism is a denomination of Hinduism that places emphasis on a group of 5 deities rather than just a single 1. The “worship of the 5 forms” (pancayatana puja) system, which was made popular by the 9th century philosopher, Sankaracarya among Orthodox Brahmins of the Smarta tradition, invokes the 5 deities: Shiva, Vishnu, Brahma, Shakti, & Surya. Sankaracarya later added Kartikeya to these 5, making 6 in total.

This reformed system was promoted by Sankaracarya primarily to unite the principal deities of the 6 major sects on an equal status. The monistic philosophy preached by Sankaracarya made it possible to choose 1 of these as a preferred principal deity & as these same time worship the other 4 deities as different forms of the same all-pervading Brahman.

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Triple Deity

This is a deity/god with 3 distinct, & apparent, forms that function as a singular whole. These deities can sometimes be called: three-fold, tripled, triplicate, tripartite, triune, triadic, or as a Trinity.

In classical religious traditions, 3 separate beings could be depicted as either a triad (who usually appears as a group such as the Greek Moirai, Charites, & Eriyes; the Norse Norns; or the Irish Morrigan), or a single deity (who’s significant for having 3 aspects such as the Greek Hecate or Roman Diana).

Trinitarian Christianity instead recognizes 3 “divine persons” in God the Father, the Son, & Holy Spirit, this is usually distinguished from the belief of independent gods, or aspects.

The trinity of supreme divinity is in Hinduism. They have the cosmic functions of creation, preservation, & destruction are personified as a triad of deities called Trimurti. Brahma is the creator, Vishnu the preserver, & Shiva the destroyer.

The sacred symbol of Hinduism, the Om/Aum, the sacred sound, syllable, mantra, & invocation, is considered to have an insinuation to the Trimurti. The A, U, & M phonemes of the word are thought to point to creation, preservation, & destruction. Phonemes means any of the perceptually distinct units of sound in a specified language that distinguish one word from another. The whole representing the transcendent or absolute Brahman is added.

This also shows 3 basic states of consciousness. In addition to which the whole syllable is interpreted as the subject of the consciousness, the self-principle (Atman). This is considered to be identical with the Brahman.

The Tridevi is the trinity of goddesses that are the consorts of the gods in the Trimurti. They’re personified by the Hindu goddesses Saraswati, Lakshmi, & Parvati. In Shaktism, these goddesses are considered the manifestations of Mahadevi, the Supreme Goddess (the female absolute). Also known as Mula-Prakriti or Adi Parashakti.

The Roman goddess Diana was worshipped from the late 6th century BC as diva triformis, “three-form goddess.” Early on, she was confused with the similar Greek goddess, Hekate/Hecate.

The Lake of Nemi was Triviae lacus for Virgil (Aeneid). Horace called Diana: montium customs nemoremque virgo (“keeper of the mountains & virgin of Nemi”) & diva triformis (“three-form goddess”).

Spells & hymns in Greek magical papyri refer to the goddess (called Hecate, Persephone, Selene, etc.) as “triple-sounding, triple-headed, triple-voiced, triple-pointed, triple-faced, triple-necked.”

The Olympian demiurgic triad in Platonic philosophy was made of Zeus, Poseidon, & Pluto/Hades. All were thought to be a monad; the same Zeus who gave rise to the Titanis demiurgic triad of Helios, Apollo, & Dionysus.

The Matres, or Matronae, are pictured as a group of 3. Sometimes with as many as 27 (3x3x3). They were associated with motherhood & fertility.

In the case of the Irish Brigid, it’s ambiguous if she’s a single goddess or 3 sisters named Brigid. The Morrigan sometimes shows up as 1 being, other times as 3 sisters. As do the 3 Irish goddesses of sovereignty – Eriu, Fodla, & Banba.

Nicene Christians profess “1 God in 3 divine persons” (God the Father, God the Son, & God the Holy Spirit). This isn’t a belief, or worship, in 3 gods & isn’t a belief in 3 aspects of God. Both of these ideas are condemned as heresy by the Catholic Church.

The Catholic Church also rejects the idea that God is 3 persons & that God is a genus that contains the 3 persons.

A circa 4th century Gnostic text, Trimorphic Protennoia, shows a 3-fold discourse of the 3 forms of Divine Thought: Father, Son, & Mother (Sophia). Micheus, Michar, & Mnesinous, the 3 Heavenly Spirits of Baptism.

Some Christian saints, especially martyrs, are in trios. Because they share a feast day or other day of remembrances.

Modalism is a form of Christian Unitarianism opposed to Trinitarianism. They believe that the 1 God is also just 1 person. But appears in 3 different forms: the Father, Son, & Spirit. Modalism adherents believe that the same 1 God appears in different forms throughout history.

For example, Jesus was 1 form of the same God. They also believe that the Holy Spirit isn’t a separate person from the Father either. But it describes God in action. Modalis is a heresy in orthodox Christianity.

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Tridevi

This is a trinity of supreme divinity in Hinduism. This joins a triad of well-known goddesses of the Trimurti, or as consorts of a masculine Trimurti. This depends on the denomination of Hinduism. This triad is typically personified by the Hindu goddesses Saraswati, Lakshmi, & Parvati. In Shaktism, these triune goddesses are the manifestations of Mula-Prakriti or Mahadevi. Triune means “3 in 1″ or 3 united in 1.”

In traditional masculine/male-centered (androcentric) denominations of Hinduism, the female Tridevi goddesses are relegated as consorts & auxiliary deities to the male/masculine Trimurti gods.

In Shaktism, the female/feminine Tridevi goddesses are given prominent roles of creator (Mahasaraswati), preserver (Mahalakshmi), & destroyer (Mahakali). In this sect, the male/masculine Trimurti God’s being put into auxiliary deities as agents of the female/feminine Tridevi.

Saraswati is the goddess of learning, acts, & music. She’s also the consort of Brahma, the creator.

Lakshmi is the goddess of fortune, wealth, fertility, auspiciousness, light, material & spiritual fulfillment. She’s the consort of Vishnu, the maintainer or preserver. Lakshmi doesn’t signify mere material wealth, but also abstract prosperity, such as glory, magnificence, joy, exaltation, greatness, & spiritual fulfillment. This translates to moksha. Moksha is liberation or release from the cycle of life, death, rebirth.

Parvati is the goddess of power, war, beauty, & love. She’s the consort of Shiva, the destroyer of evil, or transformer.

Mahasarasvati is described to be the slayer of Shumba in Devi Bhagavata Purana. This suggests that she has little to do with Saraswati.

Mahalakshmi is the prosperity aspect of Devi. She has 2 forms, Vishnu-priya Lakshmi & Rajyalakshmi. The former is the embodiment of chastity & virtuousness. The latter goes about courting kings.

Rajyalakshmi is stated to be fickle & impulsive. She enters all those places where virtue & charity may be found. As soon as these 2 vanish from any place, Rajyalakshmi will also vanish from that place.

Mahakali represents darkness, pure tamas personified. Mahakali is 1 of the 3 primary forms of Devi. She’s stated to be a powerful cosmic aspect (vyasti) of Devi & represents the guna (universal energy) named tamas, & is the personification of the universal power of transformation, the transcendent power of time.

Via Buddhism & syncretism with Japanese Shinto deities, the Tridevi entered Japanese mythology as the goddesses Benzaitennyo (Sarasvati), Kisshoutennyo (Lexmi), & Daikokutennyo (Mahakali or Parvati).

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