Even by the standards of the luminaries who sweep through Washington, the little girl in front of Lafayette Elementary School almost six miles north of the White House was special.

Politicians, power brokers and the occasional celebrities who come through town hope to be respected and maybe, in a childlike place in their grown-up hearts, genuinely liked. Sajani Shakya, 10, is worshipped.

In Nepal, Sajani is a living goddess, one of about a dozen such goddesses in her homeland who are considered earthly manifestations of the Hindu goddess Kali.

Sajani arrived in Washington on June 11 to help promote a British documentary about the living goddesses of the Katmandu Valley and to see a bit of the United States. She is the first of the Nepalese living goddesses to come to the U.S. because the girls live mostly in seclusion.

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Filed under: * Culture-Watch • Religion & Culture

1. James Manley wrote: “The idea of virginal, premenstrual purity, it does seem like a contradiction with worshipping a feminine divine,” said Rachel McDermott, associate professor in the department of Asian and Middle Eastern cultures at Barnard College Huh. And I thought all that talk about God our Mother was just an equal employment opportunity. June 29, 7:12 am | [comment link]

2. Northern Plains Anglicans wrote: Diocese of South Dakota is about to call for a coadjutor election…is this one of the candidates?  Maybe 815’s chosen candidate? June 29, 7:32 am | [comment link]

3. nwlayman wrote: I dare say this child does *not* consider herself to be both a Hindu goddess and an Episcopal priest?  She could instruct the Rev Redding. June 29, 11:05 am | [comment link]

4. Scott Gilbreath wrote: She’s been fired for visiting the US. July 3, 9:00 pm | [comment link]

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