Goddesses and Weddings
Trip Start
Jun 07, 2008
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86
188
Trip End
Jun 28, 2009
Kathmandu,
Nepal
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
First, let me just list some of the things we saw:
1. Durbar squares, with king's palaces and lots of pagoda-style temples, which were first made here, not in China like people think
2. A living goddess, who is only 4 years old
3. Lots of little girls, called kumaris, getting married to a wood apple
4. Freak Street, where hippies used to hang out
5. Lots of different religious ceremonies, for Buddhists and Hindus, including weddings, prayer services, feasts and more
6
More Kumari girls
. People bathing at the temple wells7. A march protesting something
8. Lots of soldiers parading and marching around with guns
9. A giant Buddhist Stupa, with lots of monkeys, prayer wheels, and kids on field trips
10. A boy who had just had his Thread Ceremony
11. A place where they still do animal sacrifices
12. A great children's home, started by a lawyer who is so nice, and lots of really great kids
13. Candlelit shops and houses on the way home because they have load-sharing, which means they turn off all electricity for a few hours each day.
Plus, so much more!
I did not know that the pagoda-style temples were first made here and then the Chinese and other countries copied them. We saw a five-tier temple plus lots of smaller ones. It is hard to tell if they are Buddhist or Hindu because they do a lot of the same things, but Buddhists have a Buddah
Me and some holy men
. We saw the king's palace. The king stepped down from the throne after the Maoists party won the elections a little while ago, so it is empty now. It is in the Durbar Square - every one has six things:1. A statue of the king
2. Water
3. A temple
4. A rest house
5. A bell
6. I can't remember the 6th!
At one temple, the holy man gave me a tika, which is the red dot on the forehead. Dad also rubbed his sore Achilles heel against a post that is supposed to cure any aches and pains. There were lots of people having ceremonies, feasts, and things in the temples.
The strangest thing that I saw was the world's only living goddess, the Royal Kumari! I heard about her yesterday but I did not believe it, but this morning we went to her house and saw her! The house is not very big, but is made of lots of wood carvings and brick. We went into the courtyard and Sangeeta called for her. A few minutes later, a little girl about four years old came out and waved to us from a balcony. Then she ran back inside and we heard her playing and shouting. She lives here with her caretaker until she reaches puberty. This is a new living goddess, and she had to pass lots of tests to be chosen, including watching live sacrifices of animals and seeing 108 heads of dead buffaloes with candles on their heads and not being scared
A Kumari girl
. She can only wear red and she can't walk outside her house. No one wants to marry her after she finishes because it is hard to be married to a real goddess. She was very cute and tiny, like Lu!We walked across the square, with lots of rickshaws and mopeds everywhere, to see a Wedding Ceremony for little girls, also called kumaris. Every girl in Nepal is married three times. First, when she is 3-5 years old, she is married to a wood apple, then when she is 9-10 she is married to the sun god (she has to stay in a dark room with no boys then she is married), then finally when she marries her real husband. We saw about 30 girls getting married to the wood apple. They were all dressed up in red dresses, with gold, red lipstick, and had lots of food in front of them for the ceremony. After the ceremony, they have a big feast with their families. I also met a boy who had just had his thread ceremony. Indrajit told me that when a boy is 12, he has a ceremony to say that he is a man. We also saw a real Nepali wedding. There was a live band (we saw lots of these walking around today) with trumpets and drums, and the bride and groom were sitting on the ground. The bride was wearing a red dress and a veil. She did not kiss the groom on the lips - instead she kissed his feet to show she would obey him. Sangeeta said that the bride had probably never met the groom before today. About 90% of marriages in Nepal are arranged, 5% are tribal marriages where girls and boys meet and tease each other and choose a bride or groom, and less than 5% are love marriages. I hope I have a love marriage.
We also went up a mountain to see a giant Buddhist Stupa, Swayamehunagh, where there were lots of monkeys, so it is called the Monkey Temple
Olga, the kids, and me
. We saw some men collecting all the coins from a fountain that had been donated - there were thousands of them! At the Stupa, we saw lots of school kids on field trips (one kid asked my name and then asked me what caste I was in - I said American!). We also saw prayer wheels, that you have to turn with your right hand counter-clockwise three times to make a wish. I wished that Baby Colton, my cousin, would have a good life.We went into a monastery, where we saw some Buddhist monks, and a giant gold Buddah, plus more prayer wheels. We also saw the temple for the goddess of children, who blesses children and keeps them safe from small pox. Everywhere, we saw soldiers dressed in camoflage patrolling with guns and there was a traffic jam at one place because there were guys marching to protest something.
Finally, after a very busy day, we went to meet Olga Murray, a very nice lady who started a children's home for kids in Nepal. She was amazing - besides the home that takes care of 18 girls and 18 boys and sends them to school and to college, she also runs health care centers for babies and mothers, and gives scholarships to other kids so they can go to school. (Even though school is supposed to be free here, lots of kids can't pay for the uniforms, books, and food.) Ms
Kumari girl at ceremony
. Murray came here in 1984 on a trek and saw that lots of kids had nothing, but they seemed so happy even though they did not have any toys, so she decided to help them. She is in her 80s but seems very young - she was a lawyer in California before she retired and came to Nepal. We went to the children's home and I met all of the kids. The kids were so nice and they were all shaking my hands which was fine. The boys asked me to play soccer. It is unclear what side I was on but it was fun! I got hit in the face with the ball once and they were all worried but I was fine. My dad even played. We had a fun time. Then they showed me their kitchen and dining hall. The cook made me eat a bowl of rice and some carrots, which were pretty yummy. Then they showed me their rooms. The youngest kid, Shiva, was so cute. He was only three. The kids stay there until they are 12, then they go to boarding school nearby, so they can come home to the children's home on weekends and holidays. Then if they want to go to college, Ms. Murray will help them do that. The kids were so nice to me and seemed so happy to be there. I can't imagine what it would be like without a mom or dad (their parents are either dead or can't take care of them at all). Sangeeta said that these kids were the happiest she had ever seen in a home like that. I want to go back there - it was cool and really fun! It is especially good because some kids here don't have anything to eat, or have to be soldiers, or work, and some are even sold as slaves. But these kids get to have a nice life. I feel very lucky.Nepal so far is pretty nice and really interesting - nothing at all like I expected though!
