Mother House (Missionaries of Charity) and Mother Teresa's Tomb

Mother House, at 54A Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Road in the Mullick Bazar area of Kolkata, West Bengal, India, is the headquarters of the Missionaries of Charity, the religious congregation founded by Mother Teresa in 1950. It is also the site of her tomb, which has made it one of the most visited religious places in the city. The building is a plain three-storey structure that reflects the congregation's emphasis on simplicity, and visitors enter through a modest gate into a courtyard that leads to the chapel and the tomb on the ground floor. Mother Teresa died on 5 September 1997 and was beatified in 2003 and canonised in 2016, and her tomb, a simple marble slab covered in flowers, is usually surrounded by visitors in quiet prayer. Upstairs, a small museum preserves her room, a narrow space with a bed, a desk and few belongings, along with her sandals, a bucket, a few letters and photographs, and displays explaining the work of the Missionaries of Charity. The visit is quiet and reflective, and silence is expected in the chapel and at the tomb. A visit takes 45 to 60 minutes, and morning Mass at about 6:00AM is open to visitors who wish to attend. The house is open in two daily sessions in the morning and afternoon, and it may be closed on Thursdays, so visitors should verify before going. Dress should be modest, with shoulders and knees covered. Photography is discouraged or prohibited at the tomb and chapel, and visitors should follow instructions from the sisters on site. The feast day on 5 September draws very large crowds. Many visitors also volunteer or donate through the congregation's other houses, but the Mother House itself is a place for quiet visits, and donations are welcome.