Tapes by Anthony de Mello, S.J.

Sadhana Wellsprings Wake Up to Life Satellite Retreat Lovesprings

Sadhana: A Way to God Christian Exercises in Eastern Form

Sadhana has been adapted on these twelve audio cassettes into guided prayer exercises, recorded by Fr. de Mello himself. His aim was to provide some very practical aid to those who were eager to learn the methods described in his book but who experienced difficulty persevering in practice on their own. These guided prayers may be the best way available for you today to learn how to pray better. Whether you are a beginner or a veteran, these simple techniques will help to deepen your prayer experiences. You may discover what others describe as the results of this approach: "I became aware of what I believed." "Finally I found peace." Awareness has taught me to recognize the Lord and surrender to him." "Now I can remain silent in His presence." "These exercises have transformed my prayer and my life." Retreatants and retreat masters, spiritual counselors and counselees, formation directors, pastoral ministers, many have found these cassettes invaluable as means of focusing on specific experiences, in prayer. Nursing facilities, hospitals, retirement centers, and religious communities have come to use them routinely. The group discussion of experiences derived from these exercises has proved to be most helpful for prayer and community growth. But whether you are sick or healthy, young or old, saint or sinner, these practical aids can help you enjoy your prayer more.

Wellsprings Guided Prayer Cassettes

Wellsprings evolved from the many Sadhana courses which Fr. de Mello conducted during the last ten years of his life. These new exercises build on, refine, and expand the basic approach of Sadhana. Although they can be used independently, they presuppose Sadhana as a foundation. In any case, thier power comes from making, not merely reading, the exercises, as Fr. de Mello says in the introduction: "The exercises of the book have a power that will not be experienced if they are merely read. They must be done." The recordings of Wellsprings go beyond the book to adapt and expand the exercises into the form of direct prayer experiences.

Wake Up to Life

Finally, here is the first audio recording of a full-length, live de Mello conference, the tapes which his audiences have requested for years. Even though de Mello gave innumberable workshops around teh world, he never allowed any of his talks to be recorded. In 1986 at Fordham University in New York, he allowed this conference to be videotaped by a professional television company. Due to technical difficulties, the video portion of the tapes turned out to be of inadequate quality. However, for the most part, the audio portion was excellent. Some flaws were eliminated by editing, e.g., when the lapel mike clicked off momentarily and words were missed. Some background noise coming from one video tape could not be completely edited out. All the tapes are clearly audible, perfectly intelligible, and most are excellent. On these tapes, you will hear Tony de Mello at his best, just himself, completely at home with a responsive audience. All people carry in them thoughts that have the power to bring them instant peace. - Anthony de Mello

De Mello Satellite Retreat Teleconference

The Satellite Retreat reached the largest audience Fr. de Mello ever addressed. It was viewed by hundreds of thousands of TV watchers in more than 120 sites throughout the United States, Canada, and Central America, in colleges, universities, Newman centers, communities, and parishes. Lasting four hours, it featured de Mello speaking from the campus of Fordham University in New York City and responding to audiences around the hemisphere by means of two-way telephone contact. The voice quality and audio production are excellenct. The title and purpose Fr. de Mello ascribed to this retreat was "REDISCOVERY OF LIFE!" He challenged yound and old alike to "let go and live;" let go of conflict, anxiety, tension, pressure, emptiness, loneliness, sadness, and to come back to life. On these tapes you will hear de Mello tell those ingenious stories of his that illuminate your mind, that amuse and conjole you into laughter, that liberate your spirit, that find their way to your heart. Then you may begin to wonder how a man from India could speak so pointedly and poignantly to your personal experience and background. One reviewer has described this quality in the following way: "In his words and in his person there naturally flow the best currents of East and West in a holistic apporoach which incorporates theology, psychology, literature, and popular culture. He is an international man whose planetary perspective provides the ingredients for a newly emerging human spirituality." Here are some comments people have made after responding to his message: "In one day he unburdened me of years of guilt and wrong thinking. I am now living with fresh eyes and a new heart." "The greatest gift of all was meeting Tony . . . his very presence has a way of transforming negative into positive, bringing hope and tremendous courage." "He provided an atmosphere for me to experience God and he gave me the simple means to recreate that atmosphere wherever I work." "He has broken . . . a mystical sound barrier in our spiritual growth, that has elevated our capacities to be more loving introspective."

Lovesprings Guided Prayer Cassettes based on The Way to Love

"Love springs from awarenes." These words are Tony de Mello's own way of highlighting the theme of his last meditations, written shortly before he died in 1987. That is why this new set of six cassettes is called Lovesprings. One of these tapes was actually recorded by Tony himself. At the request of a friend, he took his recorder into the garden, and in the midst of distant sounds of birds singing and of children playing he did what was asked of him. The quality of this tape is not perfect but good enough to be included in this series as a testament to his friends. All 31 exercises were recorded by Fr. Paul Coutinho, S.J., from Bombay, whose voice and inflections are very similar to Tony's. Here is the most mature flowering of Fr. de Mello's thought. More than ever before in his best-selling books, he grapples with the ultimate question of love. "If it is love you truly desire then set out at once on the task of seeing . . . . The most painful act is the act of seeing. But it is in that act of seeing that love is born."