Happy Mother's Day Cards

Mother's Day exists because of one daughter's grief, not a marketing calendar. Anna Jarvis campaigned for an official day to honour mothers after losing her own mother, Ann Jarvis, who had spent the American Civil War improving sanitary conditions for wounded soldiers on both sides. Anna's campaign succeeded in 1914, when President Woodrow Wilson signed the second Sunday of May into law as a US holiday. From there it spread — Mother's Day is now marked in over 50 countries, though several observe it on entirely different dates than the American original.

Mother's Day 2026 falls on Sunday, 10 May.

"Mata Devo Bhava"

Indian tradition had its own reverence for motherhood long before Jarvis's campaign reached the country — the Sanskrit phrase "Mata Devo Bhava" literally places the mother on par with the divine. Hindu mythology reinforces the idea structurally: Durga as protector, Saraswati as wisdom, Lakshmi as prosperity — three of the most worshipped goddesses are each framed through a maternal lens rather than a purely divine one.

What the Day Actually Looks Like

In practice, Indian Mother's Day celebrations lean toward the same gestures found globally — carnations, handmade cards from children, a special meal — but layered onto a relationship many describe as already unusually central to Indian family life. For adults living away from home, the day often comes down to a phone call or a surprise flower delivery rather than an in-person gesture, which is part of why sending something tangible carries extra weight when distance is involved.

Did You Know?

• Anna Jarvis, the founder of Mother's Day, later campaigned against its commercialisation, going as far as attempting to have the holiday rescinded by the 1940s.
• The carnation became Mother's Day's symbolic flower because it was Ann Jarvis's favourite, not for any broader symbolic reason.
• Not every country marks Mother's Day on the second Sunday of May — several nations, including much of Eastern Europe, celebrate on entirely different fixed dates tied to their own history.