The philosopher Diogenes was eating bread and lentils for supper. He was seen by the philosopher Aristippus, who lived comfortably by flattering the king. Said Aristippus, "If you would learn to be subservient to the king you would not have to live on lentils." Said Diogenes, "Learn to live on lentils and you will not have to be subservient to the king.

ISBN 978-0-385-24290-5
Awareness Image1990. The first two were collections of stories and the last a collection of exercises similar to "Sadhana". Work
De Mello authored numerous spiritual books and conducted courses based upon his work.

The few talks which he allowed to be filmed such as "A Rediscovery of Life" and "A Way to God for Today" have inspired many viewers and audiences since being released; and have been viewed by hundreds of thousands of TV watchers throughout the United States Canada and Central America; in colleges universities Newman centers and communities. He traveled to many countries to study and later to teach most notably Spain and the United States. An internationally acclaimed spiritual guide writer and public speaker de Mello hosted many spiritual conferences.