Song of the Bird

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Summary: Parables - For 'Now' -- For 'Ever'
Review: I first came across this book at the Trinity Church Bookstore in Manhattan about 16 years ago. It's been at or near the top of my 'pile' of books on spirituality ever since. For a number of years now I've been teaching an adult class at a local Methodist church, and once every several months I let the class wrestle with one of these parables for an hour or so. They always prove very provocative, just as many of those used by Jesus centuries ago. One I like has a guy going into a shop to buy 'the truth'. He backs off though when he hears what the price is : "your security." Just the 'message' for our materialist society.. Also: For a number of years (before I discovered audiocassettes!), I loved to 'gift' people I cared about with books. The most frequent one I chose : this de Mello gem. If you care about your own spiritual growth, get this book at once!(Note - this is an extremely personal book, suitable whatever your faith beliefs might be.)

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Summary: Beautiful
Review: I personaly believe that this book is one of the most eye opening books that I have ever read, it helped me to expand my knolege of God and helped me to become closer to him.

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Summary: First on my Top 10 Books of Sermon Illustrations:
Review: Over 7-8 years as Pastor-Preacher-Chaplain to Prison Inmates, I depended upon Anthony deMello's stories to make connections for the inmates who needed to see the word pictures telling them the meaning of their dreams, visions or Images of healing, growth or the answer to some indescribable problem they faced!

When I needed to catch them in-tune with inner growth or their need for self-esteem, I used deMello's stories: "The Diamond,
"The Talkative Lover, "We Are Three, You Are Three," or "Why Do Good People Die!"

If I make a speech or tell stories upon "Teaching Inmates" I use these same Anthony deMello stories to illustrate avenues to get into the hopeless, depressed, empty heads of those inmates!

His stories totally use qualities of Inspiration, Imagination, and Surprise Endings, necessary to grab Inmates' attention!
Along with other books of Anthony deMello: "Awareness, "Taking Flight, and "Sadhana: A Way to God," I know of no better source for mining these mysterious, economic length of words, and catch-22 stories to fit into many different topics,themes and biblical refrerences! Retired Chaplain Fred W Hood

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Summary: This should be a best-seller!!!
Review: This book is a must read for all the people who are devouring books by Deepak Chopra and others. Without preaching, this and other books from Anthony De Mello teach the simplicity of life.De Mello has compiled some very good stories. Other books to read are: The prayer of the Frog (Part I and II).

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Summary: Analyze yourself to become more intelligent emotionally
Review: This is a great book to help all of us to analyze ourselves better , to be able to understand our un-real ILLUSIONS and our distorted view o f others, these stories are sometimes difficult to grasp , but as soon as you think and understand them and apply them ; then your life will begin to change or be modified, remember always to have a FLEXIBLE mind and to be very sincere with yourself when you read the books o f this excellent , honest, sincere and great Psychologist A. de Mello ,his books are also publised in Spanish.Thanks to the publishers: ING. EMILIO CRISTANCHO GUEVARA; e-mail: [e-mail]

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Summary: true to sufism
Review: This is the first book I have read by this enlightened author, and I was impressed by his understanding of the esoteric teachings of the basis of Islamic Sufism. This is a great introduction to sufi teachings and those who enjoy the instrospections introduced in the Song of the Bird would marvel at Sufi parables and the works of Rumi. Truth has no boundaries and organized religion essentially helps members of a given society work towards a common goal - that of self discovery and the meaning of existence. As Rumi put it - there are many ways to kneel and kiss the ground (ie pray). It is the motive not the motion that counts at the end of the day.

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Summary: One of the best books I've read
Review: Tony De Mello uses stories which seem almost meaningless at first, but suddenly they hit you with a bang & you almost understand all the implications. The more you think of them, however, the more you learn from them. I've changed a lot since I started reading Tony De Mello. He makes you realize what the bare necesseties of life are & you learn to live without frills & fancies, concentrating on the most important aspects. His stories are sometimes like a slap in the face becoz you realise that you're seeking happiness & fulfilment in the wrong places. I especially like his audio cassettes, I've learnt a lot from listening to them. I am from Bombay, India & feel so fortunate to be exposed to many of his books right from the eighth grade.

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Summary: I Once Searched for God
Review: Unlike the man standing by the river selling water, I was a purchaser. When my "guru" gave me this book to read, I devoured it and the Truth became clear. But it was only a part of the Truth. Through the years since then, I have read many many spiritually oriented books and find that the short stories in this one use few words to say a lot. Start at the beginning as de Mello advises when reading it for the first time for one story lays the foundation for the rest. Later you will skip around when you need a bit of calming reality in this hectic world.

Rating:
Summary: I Once Searched for God
Review: Unlike the man standing by the river selling water, I was a purchaser. When my "guru" gave me this book to read, I devoured it and the Truth became clear. But it was only a part of the Truth. Through the years since then, I have read many many spiritually oriented books and find that the short stories in this one use few words to say a lot. Start at the beginning as de Mello advises when reading it for the first time for one story lays the foundation for the rest. Later you will skip around when you need a bit of calming reality in this hectic world.

Rating:
Summary: I Once Searched for God
Review: Unlike the man standing by the river selling water, I was a purchaser. When my "guru" gave me this book to read, I devoured it and the Truth became clear. But it was only a part of the Truth. Through the years since then, I have read many many spiritually oriented books and find that the short stories in this one use few words to say a lot. Start at the beginning as de Mello advises when reading it for the first time for one story lays the foundation for the rest. Later you will skip around when you need a bit of calming reality in this hectic world.