The festival marks the end of the monsoon season and beginning of autumn. More than hundred girls under the age of nine gathered for the tradition of worshiping young pre-pubescent girls as manifestations of the divine female energy. The ritual holds a strong religious significance in Newar community. It is a community affair held primarily to save small girls from diseases and bad luck in the years to come. Photo: A young Nepalese girl dressed as a Kumari or living Goddess, smiles for camera as she waits for Kumari puja at Hanuman Dhoka, Basantapur Durbar Square in Katmandu, Nepal, Tuesday, September 17, 2013. (Photo by Niranjan Shrestha/AP Photo)

Nepalese women and young girls struggle to drink homemade alcohol poured through a pipe sticking out of the mouth of Swet Bhairab, a god of Power, during the Indra Jatra festival at Basantapur Durbar Square in Kathmandu, Nepal, 17 September 2016. Hundreds of women and young girls gathered to drink alcohol as a blessing from idol of Swet Bhairab which they believes will keep them free from all diseases. The Indra Jatra festival is celebrated to honor Indra, the king of gods and god of rains. The festival also marks the end of the monsoon. (Photo by Narendra Shrestha/EPA)

Dancers Marion Krebs and Judy Ness, right, pose as batter and catcher in front of the Chicago White Sox dugout before start of game with Detroit at Comiskey Park, Chicago, Ill., September 18, 1959. White Sox won, 1-0, to move within two games of clinching the American League pennant. (Photo by AP Photo)

A picture released by the North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows Kim Jong-un convening an urgent operation meeting at 0:30 am on March 29, 2013 at an undisclosed location, in which he ordered strategic rocket forces to be on standby to strike US and South Korean targets at any time. (Photo by KCNA via EPA)

Midfielder Lindsey Horan (9) of Team United States and midfielder Kosovare Asllani (9) of Team Sweden go up for a header during the first round of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Tokyo Stadium on Wednesday, July 21. 2021. Sweden defeated the United States of America 3-0. (Photo by Toni L. Sandys/The Washington Post)

Germany fans cheer after the 2-0 goal for Germany during the UEFA Euro 2024 football match between Germany and Hungary at the public football viewing area in Berlin, Germany on June 19, 2024. (Photo by Jörg Carstensen/AFP Photo)