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Unemployed Steve ascends to Goddess status
12:58pm Friday 30th March 2007
Comments (1)A jobless Tooting man has turned his life around by travelling to the subcontinent to become an Indian Goddess.
Now thousands of Hindus believe Steve Cooper can cure infertility as a reincarnation of Goddess Bahuchara Mata - who according to legend castrated her husband because he preferred acting as a woman.
According to The Sun, pilgrims flock to the remote jungle temple to be blessed by the 32-year-old.
Steve, who now calls himself Pamela, is known by his followers as Prema - which means Divine Love in Hindi.
He lives among 80 eunuchs at the temple and eats a strict vegetarian diet and has few possessions.
And according to Steve he's much happier now then when he was living in a tiny Tooting flat.
The temple of Bahuchara Mata is located in Shankhalpoor in Gujarat, India. This holy place is today known as Bahucharaji.
Hindu goddess: Mr Cooper believed to be a reincarnation of the patron of Indian eunuchs gives blessings to devotees at the Bahucharaji Mata Temple Pic: SAM PANTHAKY/AFP/Getty Images
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Hamish MacPherson, Balham says...
3:39am Sun 15 Apr 07
Except, unlike Brian Steve seems to be happy playing along with those people who said he looked like the goddess.
And who can blame him? Apparently he's much happier now hes living in a temple in Gujarat revered by flocks of people than when he was unemployed and living in a tiny Tooting flat.
What you didnt mention is that the Sun reports that a eunuch called Sudha has declared Steve (wait for it!) a fake (I checked and he still has a penis).
When organisations like the Indian Science and Rationalists' Association work hard to expose hundreds of fraudulent gurus and swamis I feel a bit embarrassed that Wandsworth is sending another one for them to deal with.