Living Goddess

(Newser) - It can be tough making the transition from living goddess to mere mortal, so the Nepalese government is here to help. The nation's retired Kumaris will soon get the equivalent of about $160 a month, reports the Economic Times . Kumaris, for the uninitiated, are young girls chosen to be...

(Newser) - A new 3-year-old “living goddess” has been named in Nepal, Reuters reports, and she took up her post today, clad in red and gold, in an ornate 15th century temple in Kathmandu. Matina Shakya has left her family to live as the Kumari, appearing in a window to be...

(Newser) - Sajani Shakya, one of Nepal's living goddesses, is officially retiring at age 11, the AP reports. Religious leaders briefly stripped the Kumari of her divine status last year after she defied custom and traveled abroad, but her premature retirement isn't related to the controversy, officials say. She has "come...