Kumari - Living Goddess of Nepal

    patan, nepal.
    it's very lucky for me to take Kumari's photo
    you could google 'kumari' to know Living Goddess of Nepal

    Comments and faves

    1. ★

      Claude Renault, flickabix, Memaxmarz, monkeyc.net, and 38 other people added this photo to their favorites.

    2. Yilud (77 months ago | reply)

      Nice portrait of a beautiful Kumari.

    3. HL Wang (77 months ago | reply)

      yes, you are very lucky! nice taken.

    4. changhg (77 months ago | reply)

      thanks, Yilud and Wang.
      and thanks for SARS to keep me in Nepal more time in 2003, ;-)

    5. Félix Gutiérrez [deleted] (77 months ago | reply)

      great portrait, thanks for sharing that world, my friend ;)

    6. babasteve (77 months ago | reply)

      nice shot...

    7. karate...CHOP! (77 months ago | reply)

      What a great portrait. And that intense stare. [And I've never heard anyone thank SARS for anything! :) ]

    8. pfong (77 months ago | reply)

      yes you are indeed lucky to have gotten a photo of the Kumari!

    9. changhg (77 months ago | reply)

      thanks, Flixos, babasteve, karate...CHOP and pfong

    10. ceresp (77 months ago | reply)

      nice! what's she staring at?

    11. changhg (77 months ago | reply)

      she was staring at me :)
      i was taking photo for her, and maybe there were crowed pilgrims, only i was a 'foreigner'...

    12. changhg (77 months ago | reply)

      她正在看我 :)
      当时满街拥挤的都是朝拜她的人，在场只有另一个应该是职业记者和我两人在抢拍，而我又是一个“老 外”的原因，所以她在不停接受朝拜时还是会经常看看我 :)
      当时在人群中挤来挤去，拍了快100多张；要知道这是非常难得的机会，平时Kumari只在自己 的宫里，不能拍照的；也感谢Kumari和她周围的人员，给我拍照也提供了一点方便
      英语不好，抱歉了

    13. Claude Renault (77 months ago | reply)

      you were indeed very lucky..
      nice

    14. shapeshift (77 months ago | reply)

      wow, that's just great. you made the best of that moment.

    15. www.goldbeere.de (Hannelore Schmid) [deleted] (77 months ago | reply)

      Just beautiful!

    16. sk8mama (77 months ago | reply)

      She doesn't look very happy. Do you think she likes being a living goddess?

    17. Moonchildowicz [deleted] (77 months ago | reply)

      impressive

    18. Dailyville (77 months ago | reply)

      How beautiful! Love the colors and her expression.

    19. changhg (76 months ago | reply)

      thanks to all
      to sk8mama:
      i dont think she was not happy.
      "you cannt be a fish, so you cannt know a fish is happy or not".
      btw，i have some living buddha friends，thay always looks awful in public.
      sorry my poor english

    20. changhg (76 months ago | reply)

      我不认为她显得不高兴
      “你不可能成为她，你也就不可能知道她的真实想法和感受”
      我在西藏有一些活佛朋友。他们的约束都很严格，在公众面前也会很严肃。这样更神秘、庄重。
      抱歉我英文不好

    21. Kelsana (76 months ago | reply)

      Such a big respondsibility for one so young. Excellent capture.

    22. jqn (76 months ago | reply)

      这种机会太棒了！你在尼泊尔有活佛朋友？讲讲！这个kumari还是小姑娘啊，他没穿鞋子，脚底 下是不是踩了个金盆，里面是什么？

    23. jqn (76 months ago | reply)

      难怪还是小姑娘呢，刚搜了下——八岁的叫Kumari；十二岁的叫Salika；十六岁的叫Si ddha，已有经血；二十岁的叫Balika；二十五岁的叫Bhadrakapalini(意为 “烤焦的肥肉”)。

    24. changhg (76 months ago | reply)

      我在西藏有几个活佛朋友；在尼泊尔认识的朋友都不是活佛 :)
      Kumari是尼泊尔的活女神，只有3个，必须从高贵的家族中挑选童女，第一次见红后必须卸任， 重新挑选新的。
      可以看看
      www.ly321.com/news/lvyoubaodian/2005_8_18_9_3 9_544066.htm

    25. jqn (76 months ago | reply)

      很有意义的旅行！

    26. Geoff Ridenour (76 months ago | reply)

      amazing, you are lucky! she looks pist... Beautiful again! Score 8/10 (from the Score Me!
      group)

    27. Medusa83 (76 months ago | reply)

      Beautiful!!! I love her expression, great colours! Score 9.5/10 (from the Score Me! group)

    28. monkeyc.net (76 months ago | reply)

      Another great look at the world we never see, lovely shot.

      Score 10/10 (from the Score Me!
      group)

    29. Bonsan (A. Ichimura) [deleted] (76 months ago | reply)

      nice portrait and colors Score 9/10 (from theScore Me!
      group)

    30. kool_skatkat (76 months ago | reply)

      mmm, what a life

      Score _9_/10 (from the Score Me!
      group)

    31. Anjuli (76 months ago | reply)

      Phenominal costuming.. wow

    32. wooooooo [deleted] (76 months ago | reply)

      so impressive.
      this shot cannot be ignored.

    33. Mario Marcante [deleted] (76 months ago | reply)

      sinister
      great

    34. harisankar (76 months ago | reply)

      nice to see!!!

    35. Zenith Phuong (76 months ago | reply)

      i heard a lot about her... and this is the very 1st time i saw her on flickr!!!

      i know that she is respected in Nepal but somehow, i really feel pity for her as she got no childhood at all. as far as i'm concerned, her life when she retires is a real struggle!!!

      am i right? NEO? :D

    36. Spirited_Away (76 months ago | reply)

      Beautiful image, thanks for adding to world events pool. Just a suggestion, maybe you can start a new topic and put this image in large size and tell us all a bit about 'kumari' the Living Goddess of Nepal. Share the news, I'm interested. Anyways, just a though. Thanks again.
      Ana

    37. doublecappuccino (76 months ago | reply)

      She's quite striking. I had no idea she existed, and now I'm intrigued. As for the photo, the colors seem like they should pop a bit more, and I wish her feet were fully in the frame. Nevertheless, it's a compelling shot.

      Score 10/13 (from the Judgement Day
      group)

    38. Patrick8Lee (76 months ago | reply)

      I like the look that she gave you! Adds more character to this picture.

      Score 11/13 (from the Judgement Day
      group)

    39. Mr Geoff (76 months ago | reply)

      Wow. Very unusual! Great shot!

      Score 10/13 (from the Judgement Daygroup)

    40. pixability (76 months ago | reply)

      Wonderful expression on her face. I don't know quite how to read it but how could I understand a goddess. In any event I think the image does a good job of capturing the person. Score 10/13 (from the Judgement Day
      group)k

    41. click77 [deleted] (76 months ago | reply)

      Its a very interesting image,

      Score 11/13 (from the Judgement Day
      group)

    42. lakshmi.prabhala (76 months ago | reply)

      A very interesting portrait, good angle and comp But I just love the colours. Good work
      Score 11/13 (from the Judgement Day
      group)

    43. Dalmatica (75 months ago | reply)

      what a regal pose. awesome.

    44. [ angela ] (75 months ago | reply)

      A beautiful young girl. As a goodness in this age she has such a big responsibility.

    45. shimmertje (74 months ago | reply)

      Congratulations! I never thought I'd see a Kumari.

    46. williewonker (73 months ago | reply)

      You are very fortunate to capture this image. Its very good.

    47. DarkFibre (59 months ago | reply)

      Hi we made the film Living Goddess. Sajani, the Kumari, came to America. Yep - she was sacked but we went to Nepal and negotiated her reinstatement. We were all devastated by the news of her dethroning and we and her family took her to India while the situation was sorted out. Many people from her hometown refused to accept her being dethroned and when we brought her back to Nepal viewers of local TV voted for her to remain a Goddess by 70%.

      There are many human rights issues at stake here. Is a 10 year old a prisoner of Nepal? Of course she should not be, she came to America with the blessing and enthusiasm of her father and mother who are the hereditary keepers of the Kumari.

      Times are changing in Nepal and the tradition must modernize if it is to survive. Sajani is a pioneer, and her father told us “She is a Goddess, she can do what she wants!” We agree with this. Our film was a celebration of Sajani and how she uniquely bridges the gap between the needs of the community and her own personal rights.

      She wanted to go to America with us and she honored Nepal by doing so. America loved her and until the decision to dethrone her she was the greatest ambassador for Nepal and the tradition. On her return, she went through a purification ritual. In America she and we all were very careful about what she ate.

      Want to see more on Living Goddess the film? Join us at www.myspace.com/livinggoddessmovie. More images at http://www.flickr.com/photos/livinggoddess/.

    48. MrRatutsang (34 months ago | reply)

      Very nice photo. Yes, indeed you are very lucky.

    49. Mexycan (34 months ago | reply)

      un-imaginable

    50. illsed (34 months ago | reply)

      she is not happy because once she chosen to be kumari - she no longer can have childhood life, cant get married , she nothing but just a symbol of holy and she has to restrict her life to more discipline and you know - nun .... some family do not hope their daughter to be kumari

    51. himalayasguide.com (30 months ago | reply)

      everestnepaltours.com

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