Kumari Ghar (House of the Living Goddess)

The Kumari Ghar in Durbar Square houses the living goddess Kumari — a young girl from the Shakya caste selected through a rigorous process to embody the Hindu goddess Taleju until puberty. She lives in this elaborately carved brick building, which dates from 1757, and appears at an upper window on request, or during religious festivals when she is carried through the city in procession.

Non-Hindus cannot enter the courtyard interior of the building, though you can stand at the main entrance and look in. The Kumari appears at the carved wooden window upstairs at certain times of day — usually late morning. Photography of the Kumari herself is prohibited. The building's exterior woodwork is among the finest examples of Newar carved decoration in the city.

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A story
The girl chosen as Kumari must pass an elaborate selection process, including fearlessly spending a night alone in a room filled with buffalo heads and masked men. She must remain calm throughout. Once selected, she lives in near-total seclusion in the Kumari Ghar, her feet never touching the ground outside the building — she is carried when she must go out. When she reaches puberty, or suffers any significant loss of blood (including a lost tooth), her divinity is considered to have departed and she returns to normal life. Former Kumaris report mixed experiences adjusting to civilian existence afterward.