A Spiritual Survival Guide
It is nearly impossible to imagine the capacity at which Pi Patel, a young Indian boy, relies and survives because of his undying faith. The Life of Pi, by Yann Martel is a story about this very phenomenon. As this story comes into fruition, this boy is introduced as one who has double majored in zoology and religion after surviving miraculously at sea for 227 days. The very nature of this tale incorporates these ideologies in such a way that elicits strong feelings of both hope and hopelessness. Martel, the author, notes before the book begins that “it will make you believe in God”. However incredulous the statement may seem, this novel tackles this exact thing for the audience. His survival within the vastness of …show more content…
He relates the sleeping sloths to the deep meditative state of yogis. This thought is brought about so naturally due to his Hindu upbringing. It is also known at this point that he is a devout believer in God who practices Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity. He is combatted and questioned many times on his tri-faith, but Pi is adamant on believing in all three. He doesn’t understand why all these can’t be connected. His determination to follow all three show how whole-heartedly he loves. Even as his entire family dies and he gets stuck in a lifeboat of animals, his heart remains with God. That is not to say he did not experience pain. As he first became a castaway he was prone to losing hope, “I was giving up. I would have given up – if a voice hadn 't made itself heard in my heart. The voice said, "I will not die. I refuse it. I will make it through this nightmare. I will beat the odds, as great as they are. I have survived so far, miraculously. Now I will turn miracle into routine. The amazing will be seen every day. I will put in all the hard work necessary. Yes, so long as God is with me, I will not die. Amen.” (186 Matrel) The voice inside of Pi tells him to hold onto his faith, almost as though it were a spirit guide that compels him. As if it was a prophet that spoke to him, he does just that. He continues to survive, barely satiating his needs as each day passes somehow …show more content…
This also represents what is keeping him safe. Pi acknowledges this and begins to look at the bengal tiger in another light. As his hopes become dimmer, Pi’s fear grows, becoming a dominating force. He takes a step back to observe the situation at hand and comes up with several plans to kill or get away from the tiger. Pi sees this won’t work and becomes afraid, as he is looking at Richard Parker he becomes calmed, “It was Richard Parker who calmed me down. It is the irony of this story that the one who scared me witless to start with was the very same who brought me peace, purpose, I dare say even wholeness.” (205 Martel) This calm that the tiger provides him with inspires him to change his plan to tame the tiger instead. This epiphany brings about his survival, “I had to tame him. It was at that moment that I realized this necessity. It was not a question of him or me, but of him and me. [...]. Most likely the worst would happen: the simple passage of time, in which his animal toughness would easily outlast my human frailty.” (206 Martel) By entertaining the thought he could somehow overcome the tiger, Pi was going down a path that would lead to failure. He realized himself that the only way to exist with such a vicious animal was to tame it, seeing that this tiger and himself could coexist, so long as he can establish who is the alpha. Pi overcame his fear by taming Richard Parker. His knowledge of the animal kingdom paved
It is nearly impossible to imagine the capacity at which Pi Patel, a young Indian boy, relies and survives because of his undying faith. The Life of Pi, by Yann Martel is a story about this very phenomenon. As this story comes into fruition, this boy is introduced as one who has double majored in zoology and religion after surviving miraculously at sea for 227 days. The very nature of this tale incorporates these ideologies in such a way that elicits strong feelings of both hope and hopelessness. Martel, the author, notes before the book begins that “it will make you believe in God”. However incredulous the statement may seem, this novel tackles this exact thing for the audience. His survival within the vastness of …show more content…
He relates the sleeping sloths to the deep meditative state of yogis. This thought is brought about so naturally due to his Hindu upbringing. It is also known at this point that he is a devout believer in God who practices Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity. He is combatted and questioned many times on his tri-faith, but Pi is adamant on believing in all three. He doesn’t understand why all these can’t be connected. His determination to follow all three show how whole-heartedly he loves. Even as his entire family dies and he gets stuck in a lifeboat of animals, his heart remains with God. That is not to say he did not experience pain. As he first became a castaway he was prone to losing hope, “I was giving up. I would have given up – if a voice hadn 't made itself heard in my heart. The voice said, "I will not die. I refuse it. I will make it through this nightmare. I will beat the odds, as great as they are. I have survived so far, miraculously. Now I will turn miracle into routine. The amazing will be seen every day. I will put in all the hard work necessary. Yes, so long as God is with me, I will not die. Amen.” (186 Matrel) The voice inside of Pi tells him to hold onto his faith, almost as though it were a spirit guide that compels him. As if it was a prophet that spoke to him, he does just that. He continues to survive, barely satiating his needs as each day passes somehow …show more content…
This also represents what is keeping him safe. Pi acknowledges this and begins to look at the bengal tiger in another light. As his hopes become dimmer, Pi’s fear grows, becoming a dominating force. He takes a step back to observe the situation at hand and comes up with several plans to kill or get away from the tiger. Pi sees this won’t work and becomes afraid, as he is looking at Richard Parker he becomes calmed, “It was Richard Parker who calmed me down. It is the irony of this story that the one who scared me witless to start with was the very same who brought me peace, purpose, I dare say even wholeness.” (205 Martel) This calm that the tiger provides him with inspires him to change his plan to tame the tiger instead. This epiphany brings about his survival, “I had to tame him. It was at that moment that I realized this necessity. It was not a question of him or me, but of him and me. [...]. Most likely the worst would happen: the simple passage of time, in which his animal toughness would easily outlast my human frailty.” (206 Martel) By entertaining the thought he could somehow overcome the tiger, Pi was going down a path that would lead to failure. He realized himself that the only way to exist with such a vicious animal was to tame it, seeing that this tiger and himself could coexist, so long as he can establish who is the alpha. Pi overcame his fear by taming Richard Parker. His knowledge of the animal kingdom paved