Mario has turned the cave into his sanctuary—a place that brings him pure joy and inner peace. Over the years, he’s learned to tackle the challenges of a living without electricity, running water, or gas, constantly adapting to natural conditions.

Living in a cave brings daily challenges that Mario faces with determination and a resilient spirit. Each day, he walks four kilometers to fetch water, carrying six bottles on his back to meet his daily needs. For heating and other essentials, he uses gas canisters, bought with a small extra income that covers a whole year without paying bills.

Simple and Wholesome Food

Despite the hardships, Mario has found a perfect balance between his needs and those of nature. He lives on a minimal pension, which he mostly spends on simple, non-perishable foods like legumes, grains, and local produce. He follows a simple, healthy, and meat-free diet; for Mario, avoiding animal products is a vital step toward living in harmony with nature.

When visitors come by, Mario always offers them tea or a sandwich—a mark of his hospitality and open heart to anyone who shares a moment with him.

Interacting with Visitors

Though he loves solitude, Mario warmly welcomes visitors who find their way to his cave. Each meeting becomes a chance to inspire others toward a freer, more authentic lifestyle. Mario carefully gauges how to connect: he speaks softly with sensitive souls, while with others, he shares his message more directly. To him, every visit is an opportunity to positively influence anyone seeking a more conscious life.

Commitment to Prison Reform

Mario doesn’t identify with traditional political systems, yet he believes in the power of activism. He’s restructuring his cave to create a small library where he plans to host talks on prison reform.

For him, raising awareness about this issue is a vital mission. Every week, he stands outside Parliament wearing informational signs to draw attention to a reform proposal he drafted himself. His hope is to spread information often hidden by mainstream media and contribute to the butterfly effect needed to create change.

Living on Little to Give Back So Much

What makes Mario’s story even more remarkable is his generosity: despite his limited resources, he donates 75% of his pension to support families, individuals, and animals in need. Living on just 600 euros a month, Mario keeps about 200–250 for himself, giving away the rest. Thanks to occasional support from others, he manages his own needs, living with little but feeling rich in his mission to help others.

Mario’s story teaches us that by replacing attachment with sharing, we can find true peace. In a society that’s increasingly individualistic, Mario’s choice to embrace community and solidarity sends a powerful message of humanity and selflessness: to survive as a species, we must rediscover the ability to support one another.

In a Nutshell

Mario is an eighty-year-old hermit who’s lived in a cave in the woods for thirty years, embracing a life of essentials and devotion to others. Despite his age, he faces the challenges of self-sufficiency with resilience, living without electricity and obtaining nearly everything he needs on his own. Through his extraordinary story, Mario reminds us that true wealth lies in the human ability to open one’s heart to others.