Conditions to be selected for royal kumari (part)
Must belong to the Shakya caste—traditionally goldsmiths and silversmiths, and considered descendants of Shakyamuni Buddha.
Must be from an urban area rather than a rural village.
Must have parents who have lived in Kathmandu for at least three generations.
Must not have undergone the Ihi ceremony (symbolic marriage to a fruit).
Must have an astrological chart that is compatible with the King’s.
Must remain unflustered by the sight of severed animal heads or gruesome sounds during rituals.
(Note: Some former Kumaris claim this last point is incorrect.)
Batislakchhen
The 32 physical characteristics a Kumari should possess
- Well-proportioned legs
- Circular contours of the soles of the feet
- Well-proportioned heels
- Long ankles (and toes)
- Goose-like or duck-like limbs
- Soft and supple limbs
- Body shaped like a *Saptachatta* leaf
- Deer-like thighs
- Genitals deeply set within the pelvis
- Rounded shoulders
- Lion-like chest
- Long arms
- Immaculate body
- Conch-shell-like neck (or cheeks)
- Lion-like cheeks
- Forty teeth
- Well-proportioned teeth
- White teeth
- Small, delicate tongue
- Moist tongue
- Low voice like a sparrow’s
- Blue (or black) eyes
- Eyelashes like a calf’s
- Beautiful complexion
- Golden (radiant) complexion
- Beautiful, small pores
- Stiff, right-curling hair
- Blue (or black) hair
- Broad, well-proportioned forehead
- Round head (conical at the crown)
- Body like a Nyagrodha (Bodhi) tree
- Sturdy body
Based on *Nepal’s Living Goddess* (Heibonsha) and *Virgin Goddess* (Shueisha).