If you are female, possess “the voice of a duck” and are between 2 and 4 years old, it could be just the job for you - Nepal is advertising for a new living goddess.

Despite being revered as a powerful Hindu divinity, the Himalayan state's Royal Kumari has no option but to step down once she reaches puberty. Because Preeti Shakya, the current holder of the centuries-old role, has reached her 11th birthday, the race is on to find a replacement before the end of the summer.

Preeti, who has been visited by a ceaseless throng of pilgrims since she became a goddess at the age of 4, should retire during the annual Hindu festival of Dasain in October, according to temple officials in Kathmandu.

“If we don't change her now we'll have to wait until next year, which could be late,” said Deepak Bahadur Pandey, of the Trust Corporation, which oversees the Kumari search. “It is inauspicious if the girl starts menstruating while serving as Kumari.”

The job criteria are rigorous: Kumaris, who are typically selected as toddlers, must have a voice “as soft and clear as a duck's”, “the body of a Banyan tree” and “the chest of a lion”. The 32 prerequisite physical “perfections” also include flawless skin, hair, eyes and teeth. A suitable horoscope is mandatory and being afraid of the dark is not allowed.

There are perks: a Kumari can eat whatever she likes and act with impunity — at least her parents, who receive a small cash stipend, are not allowed to tell her off. For 240 years, before the abolition of Nepal's monarchy in May after a Maoist uprising, the Royal Kumari was asked to approve the rule of the king.

This year she was called to approve the Himalayan state's interim prime minister. But the change in Nepalese politics over the past year could make the current Kumari search the last. In elections in April, former Maoist guerrilla fighters won most of the seats. The country's new leader, Prachanda, who was appointed Prime Minister yesterday, is a former communist rebel - and not a fan of girl goddesses.

“The Kumari is not an essential institution for the new Nepal,” Janardan Sharma, a Maoist MP, said.

Many of his colleagues regard the Kumari as an “evil symbol” linked to Hinduism's rigid caste system and incompatible with socialism.

Whether the tradition should be continued has been fiercely debated for several years. Advocates say that the selection ritual, which calls for Hindu-worshipped Kumaris to be chosen from a Buddhist tribe, promotes inter-religious fellowship. Critics say that girls are denied an education and a normal life. Being chosen can carry a stigma into later life, they add, as some Nepalese believe that marrying a former Kumari is fatal.

The allure of being revered is also waning. A generation ago hundreds of parents would offer their daughters for the Royal Kumari selection process. In 2001 when a house-to-house search was launched in Kathmandu, only five families offered their daughters.

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