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Stephanie Sinclair

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  • Smriti Bajrcharya, 7, the Kumari of Bungmati, sits on her throne during one of the many auspicious days when she is worshiped. However, four days after the devastating earthquake in April, she lost one of her upper teeth while playing with friends, resulting in her immediate termination as kumari. It’s believed that the spirit of the goddess, the shakti, that enters the girl’s body when she becomes a kumari, will leave her if she loses any blood. While some in the community fear her tooth loss means bad luck, her family believes the earthquake forced the goddess to leave her body.
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  • Resuka Maharjan, 2, plays after day care while waiting for worshipers to visit. Several female family members also served as kumari.
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  • Unika Vajracharya was on her throne when the earthquake struck in April and, according to her family, entered a trance-like state and reassured them that they were safe.
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  • In the family living room, Unika plays with her younger brother as her parents debate whether to offer her for selection as a kumari. The incumbent girl had just been dismissed because she got her first period.
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  • Local priests asked qualified families to put forth their daughters for selection as the next Patan Kumari. Ultimately, only two girls were put forth out of eight were approached. Many of the families chose not to allow their daughters to go through the official selection process due to the personal and financial burdens that come with the tradition.
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  • Unika Vajracharya leaves her home to give blessings on an auspicious day. Today there are just 10 kumaris in Nepal, nine of them in the Kathmandu Valley. They’re still selected only from families attached to certain bahals, or traditional courtyard communities, and all their ancestors must have come from a high caste.
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