The Last Movie You Watched

[Mystical]

I just watched Beautiful Creatures and it was refreshingly unconventional and unpredictable! Loved it, actually.. reminds me of that movie Practical Magic..

[Esquilax]

Pacific Rim. Oh god, Pacific Rim.

This is a movie built out of everything I've ever thought was cool. It is just... you get bludgeoned with awesome for a couple hours. I'm still totally fanboying over it.

Entirely recommended. Seriously, everyone go see it.

[Zen Badger]

Pacific Rim. Oh god, Pacific Rim.

This is a movie built out of everything I've ever thought was cool. It is just... you get bludgeoned with awesome for a couple hours. I'm still totally fanboying over it.

Entirely recommended. Seriously, everyone go see it.

I want to see it just to watch Sydney get demolished

[Angrboda]

[Angrboda]

"Living Goddess"

In Nepal, a country torn apart by civil war, young girls are worshiped as living incarnations of the goddess.



Part history, part religious document, part document of life in a country torn apart by political violence.

Dating back to the 17th century, the ritual and practice included legitimization of the monarchy. The monarchy is gone, and the state continues to appoint Kumari.

I think my favorite scene was the ritual sacrifice of a goat to the goddess. The head was decapitated in one blow, and the body of the goat, still spurting warm blood from the neck, was carried around the periphery of a truck, spurting blood on the tires, running boards, and bumpers, to purify the vehicle and insure prosperity.

Kumari is a Nepali word meaning ‘virgin goddess.’ The Royal Kumari, as the spirit of the Taleju goddess believed to be embodied in a long succession of Nepali girls, has been worshiped for centuries. Traditionally speaking, Taleju is the state goddess, the chief protectress of the royal lineage, and virgin mother of the world. Interestingly, the Royal Kumari is always chosen from the Newar Shakya clan. Though the Kumari is Buddhist by birth, the Taleju is a very important Hindu Goddess. This unique tradition is a perfect example of the intertwining and peaceful coexistence of religions Nepal has long been known for.

Young girls must have the 32 perfections of the goddess in order to be a Royal Kumari. The list of requirements is elaborate: she must have perfect health without any history of serious illness, unblemished skin, black hair, gorgeous expressive eyes, a sonorous voice, long slender arms, delicate and soft hands and feet, straight hair curled towards the right side, no bad body smells, and must not have shed any blood. The most important requirement is that the girl has never menstruated. When a Kumari has her first menstruation, she loses her divine power and is returned back to life as an ordinary girl. (Menstruation is seen as a mark of impurity in traditional Nepali society. Hindu girls must stay inside a closed room for the first two weeks after their first menstruation, avoiding contact with males and sunlight. At the end of the two weeks, the girls have to perform specific rituals with priests before they can return to ordinary life. This is a tradition that has been continued for centuries.) Her family’s reputation for piety is taken into consideration by the selection committee, which also looks for calmness and fearlessness in the girl. To ensure the girl’s compatibility with the King of Nepal, her horoscope is compared and must match with his, as the Kumari has an important role in relation to the King, including the traditional power to confirm the King’s rule.

The nominated girl then undergoes an extraordinary test on the night of Kalratri (the eighth night of Dashain festival). She must pass by one hundred and eight buffaloes and goats that have been sacrificed to the Goddess Durga, without any fear. If she maintains a perfectly calm demeanor through the circuit of carnage, she is taken into the Taleju temple by a high priest and installed as the new incarnation of the goddess.

There are actually eleven living goddesses in Nepal known as Kumari. They are chosen for various towns because Kumaris are believed to protect the towns from evil powers. The three most important Kumaris are each associated with one of the three main towns of the Kathmandu Valley: Patan, Bhaktapur and Kathmandu. The Royal Kumari of Kathmandu is by far the most influential and revered.

— The Nepali Way —

Whilst the veneration of a living Kumari in Nepal is relatively recent, dating only from the 17th century, the tradition of Kumari-Puja, or virgin worship, has been around for much longer. There is evidence of virgin worship taking place in India for more than 2,300 years. It appears to have taken hold in Nepal in the 6th century. There is written evidence describing the selection, ornamentation and worship of the Kumari dating from the 13th century.

There are several legends telling of how the current tradition of the Kumari began. Most of the legends, however, tell of King Jayaprakash Malla, the last Nepalese king of the Malla Dynasty (12th–17th century CE). According to the most popular legend, a red serpent approached the king's chambers late one night as he played tripasa, a dice game, with the goddess Taleju. The goddess came along every night to play the game, with the condition that the king refrain from telling anyone about their meetings.

But one night the king's wife followed him to his chamber in order to find out who the king was meeting so often. The king's wife saw Taleju and the goddess was angered. She told the king that, if he wants to see her again or have her protect his country, he'd have to search for her among the Newari (Shakya) community of ratnawali, as she would be incarnated as a little girl among them. Hoping to make amends with his patroness, King Jayaprakash Malla left the palace in search of the young girl who was possessed by Taleju's spirit.

Similarly, there is another story about the disappearance of Taleju. Some believe that the goddess visited king Trailokya Malla every night in the human form. Like other legendary stories, the king and the goddess played tripasa (dice) while discussing about the welfare of the country. However, one night king Trailokya Malla made sexual advances towards the goddess Taleju. As a result,the goddess in rage stopped visiting the palace. The king in regret worshipped and pleaded for her return. Finally, the goddess agreed to appear in the body of the virgin girl from the Shakya family.

Even today, a mother's dream of a red serpent is believed to be a portent of the elevation of her daughter to the position of Royal Kumari. And each year, the Nepalese King seeks the blessing of the Royal Kumari at the festival of Indra Jatra. This tradition has changed recently with the country becoming the youngest republic of the world. This year the president of Nepal sought Kumari's blessing instead.

[Mystical]

Apophenia, I think I will watch that one!
In related news I watched this last night

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WoWmNAS16...ata_player

[Walking Void]

Someone reminded me of old animes so I watched this movie:

[Whateverist]

Just saw the movie Tortilla Soup. Schmaltzy for sure with characters that are rather rounded on the edges but I liked it. The prepping and cooking of meals made my mouth water throughout.

[Tonus]

Saw Iron Man 3 a few weeks ago. A disappointing film, particularly in that the coolest part of the movie reveals a plot hole that basically makes the rest of the movie moot. I have to wonder if Marvel will follow the standard path and "reboot" the series now, considering that they left us with a very major change to one of the core characters at the end that I can't imagine they'd want to simply wipe out and forget. Not to mention having to replace Robert Downey Jr as Tony Stark, a role he has made his own and which will be extremely difficult to follow with someone who isn't Robert Downey Jr.

Saw Despicable Me 2 yesterday. A funny movie that tries to fit a very bare story into a lot of slapstick. By the end of the film you'll have had your fill of the antics of the little yellow minions, as they get very overused and you realize that the schtick that made them so funny the first time around is not so funny the thirtieth, fortieth, and hundredth time around.

[Rev. Rye]

Just went to see Pacific Rim. It was awesome.