Kumari- Living goddesses

Kumari, or Kumari Devi, is the tradition of worshiping
young pre-pubescent girls as manifestations of the divine
female energy or devi in Hindu religious traditions. The
word Kumari, derived from Sanskrit Kaumarya meaning
"virgin", means young unmarried girls in Nepali and some
Indian languages and is a name of the goddess Durga as a child.

In Nepal a Kumari is a pre-pubescent girl selected from
the Shakya or Bajracharya clan of the Nepalese Newari
community. The Kumari is revered and worshiped by
some of the country's Hindus as well as the Nepali
Buddhists, though not the Tibetan Buddhists. While there
are several Kumaris throughout Nepal, with some cities
having several, the best known is the Royal Kumari of
Kathmandu, and she lives in the Kumari Ghar, a palace in
the center of the city. The selection process for her is
especially rigorous. The current Royal Kumari, Matina
Shakya, aged four, was installed in October 2008 by the
Maoist government that replaced the monarchy. Samita
Bajracharya, as the Kumari of Patan is the second most
important living goddess. A Kumari is believed to be the
incarnation of the goddess Taleju (the Nepalese name for
Durga) until she menstruates, after which it is believed
that the goddess vacates her body. Serious illness or a
major loss of blood from an injury are also causes for her
to revert to common status.