Kathmandu, Dec. 26 :    Kathmandu, Dec. 26:  Behind the heavily made-up mask of the 'living goddess' of Nepal, there is an 11-year-old girl. In the 15th-century Kumari Devi temple of Kathmandu, young virgins are worshipped as an incarnation of Kali. The tradition is as old as the worn-out structure of the temple itself. It is a story born every time the 'deity' reaches puberty and leaves the temple. The girl-goddess spends her childhood within the confines of the temple. The greatest freedom she can enjoy is looking out onto the sun-dappled terrace from behind the curtained windows. A 'goddess' is barely five when leaving behind her parents, she crosses the threshold of the temple that becomes her home for the next 10 years or so. Her parents can visit her but Kumari Devi is barred from talking to anyone outside the family of priests with whom she lives. She is not allowed to step out of her religious abode once she is 'revered' with the title of Kumari Devi of Kathmandu and metamorphoses, in the eyes of devotees, from an ordinary young girl to goddess Kali. 'I believe Kumari Devi can grant you what you want and that is why I go to have a darshan,' says a vendor outside the temple. He points to a window overlooking the terrace. 'That is where she stays,' he says. Only three times in a year is Kumari Devi allowed to leave the precincts of the temple when she travels through the streets of Kathmandu, heavily bejewelled and made up. 'Every morning there is a queue of people outside the temple to have a darshan,' says Subir Thapa, a civil guard on 24-hour duty at the temple. At the foot of the wooden staircase leading up to the corridor hangs a notice: 'Foreigners not allowed.' A group of curious tourists is turned back. 'Only Hindus and Buddhists are allowed to go upstairs,' says Subir. Nepali tradition lays down strict religious guidelines for choosing a virgin. Various strands of myths have coalesced into the overpowering, mystic cult of Kumari Devi. 'She has to have beautiful eyes, a wide forehead and a blemishless skin,' says Subir. A committee of religious heads picks her through a rigorous religious test. She is worshipped by thousands, the old and the young alike, who gather every morning to pay their respects and make wishes. Things are a little different from the old times, though. Inside the temple complex, on the first floor, are tiny rooms housing the family of the priest. In one of them sits the Kumari Devi poring over text books. 'Times have changed. Now Kumari Devi can play with other kids in the family and can even watch television,' say neighbours.