The holy Italian friar and mystic had a deep relationship with the Blessed Virgin Mary and would often see her throughout the day..
Many regard Padre Pio (1887-1968, canonized in 1999) as one of the holiest saints in the history of the Catholic Church, recounting the innumerable favors that he was given by God throughout his long life.
In addition to the stigmata, Padre Pio was known to have encounters with the devil and to have a wide variety of mystical visions.
Padre Pio was deeply devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and so an obvious question would be, "Did he ever see her during his life on earth?"
This is precisely the question that he was asked by various people and is recorded in the book, Padre Pio: The True Story, published by Our Sunday Visitor.
Padre Pio's experience was much different from that of some visionaries, who would be granted a single vision, or maybe a few visions that ended on a particular day.
According to those who knew him, Padre Pio would see the Virgin Mary on a daily basis:
Asked if he actually saw Our Lady, Padre Pio told a man named Enzo Bertani, "Yes, during Holy Mass. Every morning she is at the altar with Jesus." When a priest asked Padre Pio if the Virgin Mary ever came to him in his cell, he replied, "You should rather ask me if she ever leaves my cell."
For Padre Pio, these everyday occurrences lift back the veil of the spiritual reality that Mary is always with each one of us. We simply don't see her.
The Rosary in particular was one of his favorite prayers, which he would recite continually throughout the day. It was his "weapon," while also a way in which he communicated to her.
He further commented on how her presence was soothing to him: "Her motherly smile encourages me to remain always serving in this world, from which I would like to leave," the Padre insisted. "I am always in Our Lady's arms and she gazes on me sweetly!"
Even if we are not able to see her, may we have a similar picture in our minds of the Virgin Mary holding us tenderly and looking on us with her smile!
Philip Kosloski
Source: https://aleteia.org/2025/09/23/did-padre-pio-ever-see-the-virgin-mary-during-his-life/