Nepal quake forces ‘living goddess’ out

Traditional custom: Bajracharya, the longest reigning Kumari of Nepal, sitting in her quarters in Kathmandu. — AFP

PATAN: When a massive earthquake struck Nepal in April, Nepal’s longest-serving “living goddess” was forced to do the unthinkable – walk the streets for the first time in her life, she said in a rare interview.

Before the 7.8 magnitude April 25 quake, Dhana Kumari Bajracharya had only ever appeared in public while being carried in an ornate wooden palanquin.