Humble and grounded visionary (1934–2015)
Sister Nirmala, the nun chosen by Mother Teresa to carry on her legacy of service to the poor, the dying and the destitute, passed away on 23 June 2015 at the age of 81 in Kolkata. She had stepped down from the position of Superior General of the Missionaries of Charity in 2009 for reasons of health. Born Kusum Joshi on 23 July 1934 at Regmi Village, Syanja, Nepal, her family is believed to have later shifted to Doranda in Ranchi. She was the eldest of the ten children born into a Nepali Hindu Brahmin community. When she was taught by Christian missionaries in Mount Carmel, Hazaribagh, she came to learn about the work of Mother Teresa and the Missionaries of Charity. She soon converted to Catholicism and was baptised on 5 April 1958. In May 1958, she joined the Missionaries of Charity with the name of Nirmala, which means “purity”.
Sister Nirmala was known for her humility, her groundedness, her loving nature and her courage to correct herself when proved wrong. She studied at St. Margaret’s High School at Bahubazar Ranchi and had a Master’s degree in Political Science from Patna Women’s College. She assumed office as the head of the Missionaries of Charity on 13 September 1997. She made way for Sister Prema in 2009 and returned to a life of prayer after 12 years as Superior General. The same year, the Padma Vibhushan was conferred on her. Sister Nirmala visited the Vatican to attend the Special Assembly for Asia of the Synod of Bishops.
In 2008, Sister Nirmala launched an appeal to all Indians to break the chain of violence in Orissa. The Italian bishops’ conference also launched a day of prayer and fasting on 5 September 2008, as a sign of solidarity with the persecuted Christians. Her appeal came after the cycle of violence that broke out against Christians in Orissa following the assassination of the Hindu radical Swami Laxamananda Saraswati by a group of Maoists. By then, at least 20 were killed, hundreds wounded, 45 churches burnt, social centres, hostels, orphanages, and hospitals destroyed, and hundreds of homes burnt down. Sister Nirmala asked for eternal rest for Swami Laxamananda and for the massacred Christians, calling upon the “brothers and sisters” of India not to “use religion to divide us” or “use it as an instrument of violence”.
When Sister Nirmala joined Missionaries of Charity in 1958, she was studying law. After she joined, Mother insisted that she carry on with her studies and this turned her into a full-fledged lawyer. She was the first Sister to have been sent abroad.
It was not easy for Sister Nirmala’s parents to accept their daughter’s decision to become a Catholic. “Initially, my parents did not like the idea. Two years later, they accepted my decision and were happy about my vocation. My youngest sister became an apostolic Carmelite, called Sister Marie Therese, and this indirectly helped convince them. When my father and mother fell ill, my sister returned to look after them, surprising them because, although she had converted to Catholicism and had become a sister, they saw the Hindu ideal of self-sacrifice and service from the heart fulfilled in her”, said Sister Nirmala.
The “legacy” of Mother Teresa for Sister Nirmala was a crucifix and a rosary. These are the two indispensable and most effective “tools” with which to serve the poor everywhere. Sister Nirmala, like every Missionary of Charity, took them everywhere with her. It matters little whether these two objects actually belonged to Mother Teresa.