Heeraba Modi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s mother Heeraba Modi will always remain a source of inspiration for the him. “A glorious century rests at the feet of God,” tweeted PM Modi as his mother passed away at the age of 100 on Friday. She was admitted to Ahmedabad’s UN Mehta Hospital.
The PM who shared her picture, said, “In Maa I have always felt that trinity, which contains the journey of an ascetic, the symbol of a selfless Karmayogi and a life committed to values.”
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He further wrote, “When I met her on her 100th birthday, she said one thing – Always remember – Work with intelligence, live life with purity.”
Roots in Vadanagar
Heeraba was born on June 18, 1922 in Vadnagar in Mehsana, Gujarat. She has five sons – PM Narendra Modi, Pankaj Modi, Soma Modi, Amrit Modi and Prahlad Modi, and one daughter, Vasantiben Hasmukhlal Modi. She lived in Raysan village near Gandhinagar with the prime minister’s younger brother, Pankaj Modi.
In June on her birthday this year, the prime minister, in his blog titled ‘Mother’ – wrote, “Mother – is not just any other word in the dictionary. It encompasses a whole range of emotions – love, patience, trust, and a lot more. Across the world, irrespective of country or region, children have a special affection for their mothers. A mother not only gives birth to her children, but also shapes their minds, their personality, and their self-confidence. And while doing so, mothers selflessly sacrifice their own personal needs and aspirations.”
A life full of struggles
In his blog, the prime minister spoke about the struggles that his mother faced in life and described her as a simple but extraordinary woman. She lost her mother when she was very young and endured many hardships in life, but that only made her strong, he said.
“My Mother was born in Visnagar in Mehsana in Gujarat, which is quite close to my hometown, Vadnagar. She did not get her own mother’s affection. At a tender age, she lost my grandmother to the Spanish Flu pandemic. She does not even remember my grandmother’s face or the comfort of her lap. She spent her entire childhood without her mother. She could not throw tantrums at her mother, as we all do. She could not rest in her mother’s lap like we all do. She could not even go to school and learn to read and write. Her childhood was one of poverty and deprivation,” he wrote.
“Mother did not have much of a childhood due to these struggles – she was forced to grow beyond her age. She was the eldest child in her family and became the eldest daughter-in-law after marriage. In her childhood, she used to take care of the entire family and manage all the chores. After marriage, too, she picked up all these responsibilities. Despite the onerous responsibilities and everyday struggles, Mother held the entire family together with calm and fortitude,” the prime minister added.
Special moments shared
The son also recollected some special moments with his mother as a child. He recalled several sacrifices that she made when he was growing up and mentioned her various qualities that have shaped his mind, personality, and self-confidence.
The house in Vadnagar where they lived was had mud walls and clay tiles for the roof. It was a tiny house where the parents and children lived. His mother did all the household chores and also worked to supplement the household income. She washed utensils at others’ houses took out time to spin the charkha to help meet the household expenses, he said.
“Mother used to wash utensils at a few houses to help meet the household expenses. She would also take out time to spin the charkha to supplement our meagre income. She would do everything from peeling cotton to spinning yarn. Even in this back-breaking work, her prime concern was ensuring that the cotton thorns don’t prick us.”
“During the rains, our roof would leak, and the house would flood. Mother would place buckets and utensils below the leaks to collect the rainwater. Even in this adverse situation, Mother would be a symbol of resilience,” PM Modi reminisced.
No bigger guru than mother
The biggest lesson that he learnt from his mother was that it was possible to be learned without being formally educated. “When I became the chief minister of Gujarat, I wanted to publicly honour all my teachers. I thought that mother had been my biggest teacher in life, and I should also honour her. Even our scriptures mention that there is no bigger guru than one’s mother – ‘Nasti matr samo guruh’. I requested mother to attend the event, but she declined. She said, “See, I am an ordinary person. I may have given birth to you, but you have been taught and brought up by the Almighty. All my teachers were felicitated that day, but for Mother.”
The son said his mother ensured the family members of the local teacher, Jethabhai Joshi Ji attended the event. The teacher had taught me the alphabet, the PM said. “Mother made me realise that it is possible to be learned without being formally educated. Her thought process and farsighted thinking have always surprised me,” he said.
He reflected on his mother’s extremely simple lifestyle. “I have never seen her wear any gold ornaments, and she has no interest either. Like earlier, she continues to lead an extremely simple lifestyle in her small room,” he stated.
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