The Prime Minister and the Kumari

[Guest guest]

The prime minister and the kumari

This year's 250th kumari chariot jatra was different from all

previous ones

Scott Berry

The Nepali Times

 

Last year, anticipation was in the air as we wondered

whether the king [of Nepal] would show up or not. Of course

in the end he did, and as he stood on the balcony of the Gaddi

Baithak, he looked confident, arrogant, even happy, in spite

of the boycott by most foreign diplomats.

 

This year, the same anticipation. Would this be the first time

in the 250 year history of the Kumari Rath Jatra, that the

festival would not be presided over by a monarch? Even till

3.30 PM no one seemed sure. In the end [prime minister]

Girija Koirala did show up, but disappeared at the crucial

time.

 

Inside Kumari Ghar everyone was so taken up with

preparations for the 250th anniversary of Kumari Jatra, that

the question of who would preside did not seem very

important. " That's just politics. It doesn't concern us, " one

of the Kumari guardians said.

 

During the early and mid-eighties [...] King Birendra was

still an absolute monarch. While he was not popular among

urban, educated youth, anything like an anti-monarchy

demonstration would have been unthinkable. The monarch

was simply there, and politics were forgotten at festival

time.

 

[....] [Last year] a noisy crowd of Maoist anti-royalists tried

to force their way in from the direction of Kasthamandap

and were beaten back with the old enthusiasm. Meanwhile,

in front of the king there was a small flag-waving, pro-

royalist demonstration. This year it was the pro-royalist

black-flag demonstration that was kept out, giving the riot

police their one opportunity to wield their truncheons and

make a few arrests.

 

Also kept out, for some reason, were the dancers. Did the

prime minister not wish to appear to be stepping directly

into the king's footsteps? Lakhe and Bhairav had spun

around enthusiastically in return for royal coins last year.

Lakhe now put in an appearance just long enough to slip and

fall. Bhairav and his followers literally had to fight their

way into the square, then danced listlessly off to the side.

Indra's elephant, a great crowd pleaser, was nowhere to be

seen, at least not yet. Just before Ganesh, Bhairav and

Kumari emerged, when festivities should have been

reaching a fever pitch, the square went eerily quiet.

 

When the chariot procession started, things got very strange.

The prime minister stood there smiling and waving, among

far more ambassadors and far less military brass than had

been present last year, as Ganesh and Bhairav stopped in

front of him. Then, before Kumari's chariot approached, he

went inside, followed by his ministers. At this point, an axle

on Kumari's rath broke. I've seen her stuck in all sorts of

potholes in the back streets, and I even remember seeing her

carried home while her chariot was left to be retrieved the

next day. But I have never seen her stuck before she even

started.

 

Meanwhile the crowd was entertained by a combination of

black-flag protestors fighting the police, Indra's elephant

running about complaining about not being let into the

square earlier, the band which kept bravely playing away,

and a ten-figure tableau that got bored with standing there

and started dancing.

 

When Kumari's rath finally got going, with nothing but a

bunch of foreign ambassadors to greet her, it didn't bother

to stop for the usual tribute. As soon as she had passed,

Girija Babu [the prime minister] miraculously reappeared,

smiling and waving at the back of the chariot, the first time

in 250 years that Kumari has not been greeted by a head of

state. In fact, this must have been the strangest reception

Kumari has had since Prithvi Narayan Shah appeared out of

nowhere in place of Jayaprakesh Malla at the festival of

1767. Of course the upcoming tika ceremony on Sunday

night is even more important, but we will have to wait and

see what happens then.

 

Once Kumari got started, she had a good long procession,

not returning till 2AM. This was caused not by further

breakdowns, but by the unusual number of pujas and and

bhajan groups along the way in celebration of the 250th

anniversary of the festival.

 

This was my third Kumari. Anita Shakya, Kumari in the

early eighties, was always stone-faced as tradition required,

in spite of the excitement around her. Rashmila Shakya,

who took over from her in 1984, has told me that as soon as

she donned her naga necklace, she felt like she was in a

different world, and the thought of smiling, or betraying any

emotion at all, never even occurred to her, though she was

'smiling inside'. The present Kumari never bothers to keep

her feelings secret. She smiles and talks constantly during

festivals, and I've even seen her break into tears.

 

Rashmila Shakya says this year's festival was different from

any other she remembers. The former Kumari who is now a

computer technician at Lumanti in Kopundol said that at

first no one knew whether the king or the prime minister

was coming. " There were no dancers in the square, so it was

not as exciting as usual, " Rashmila said, " and the prime

minister did not throw coins, he only watched. And then

when the chariot broke in front of Kumari Ghar, it was very

surprising and shocking. "

 

On the other hand, Rashmila said, everyone was very

excited over the 250th anniversary of the Kumari festival,

adding: " There were lots of special pujas in front of the

chariot, so this year there was a very special atmosphere. "

Is it reading too much into this to connect Kumari's

behaviour with the present state of the monarchy? There are

precedents. In 1954 Kumari mistakenly gave the king's tika

to Crown Prince Mahendra, who within a year would

occupy the throne.

 

And in 1990, Rashmila, who had always enjoyed perfect

health, became ill and moody during the Democracy

Movement, though she knew nothing about politics. But

perhaps we should look for a more positive interpretation.

Could the present Kumari's behaviour symbolise a more

relaxed and open future for the nation?

 

Through the broken axle, the black flag demonstration and

the disappearing prime minister, let's not forget that Kumari

is still a symbol of the unity of the nation and of the lack of

enmity between faiths: a Buddhist girl who becomes a

Hindu goddess and is venerated by both communities. And

if she breaks with tradition by smiling, Nepal needs all the

smiles it can get these days. Let's hope hers can make a

difference.

 

http://www.nepalitimes.com/issue/368/Culture/14008