1
Feng
Jonathan Feng
Mrs. Emma Richardson
University English II
19 November 2007
Life of Pi: Faith in God
Elaborated Thesis: The Life of Pi presents a gripping and credible case for religious faith because of Pi’s embracing of major religions, Pi’s encounters with animals as religious symbols, and Pi’s religious faith and will to live at sea.
I. Pi’s embracing of major religions
A. Hinduism
1. Experienced a Hindu rite of passage at birth
2. Believes that universe makes sense through Hindu eyes
3. Has deep reverence to Hindu gods
4. Makes references to Hinduism throughout book
B. Islam
1. Introduced to Islam by first observing a Muslim pray
2. Feels deep religious contact in a mosque and with its formality of prayers
3. Loves Arabic and the Qur’an
C. Christianity
1. Met Jesus Christ on a holiday
2. Is fascinated by the concept of love in the story of Christ
3. Drawn by the idea of a mortal God
4. Wishes to be baptized
II. Religious and spiritual symbolism in animals
A. Pi’s consolation in zoology in conjunction with religion
B. Pi’s upbringing in the Pondicherry Zoo
C. Enthrallment with the uniqueness of animals
D. Animals aboard the lifeboat
1. Marvelous body of Richard Parker as both an image of God and a sign of the brutality of the world
2. Zebra as suggesting martyrdom for the senseless brutality of life
3. Suffering and bloodshed as representing Christian values of patience and love
III. Pi’s religious faith and will to live at sea
A. Constant prayer
1. For consolation and aid
2. For the animals
B. Steadfast faith in God, which results in his strong will to live
1. Promises early on that he will change miracles into everyday occurrences
2. Centralizes love as a value and implies the power of faith to overcome apparent impossibilities
C. Breaks lifelong bonds to survive at sea
1. Breaks bond of a vegetarian
2. Breaks vow not to kill another being
1
Feng
Jonathan Feng
Mrs. Emma Richardson
University English II
19 November 2007
Life of Pi: Faith in God
Yann Martel’s Life of Pi is an account of a boy, a tiger, and the vast Pacific Ocean. Born to an Indian family, Piscine Molitor Patel (“Pi” for short) was raised in his father’s zoo in Pondicherry. Later, because of India’s political unrest, Pi’s family decides to move to Canada in a cargo ship, along with cages full of zoo animals. The ship, however, sinks, leaving Pi and the tiger Richard Parker bobbing on the Pacific Ocean in a lifeboat. After a series of events at sea for 227 days, the boat finally washes ashore on a Mexican beach, where villagers rescue Pi and Richard Parker flees. Pi’s story is a unique, high-seas adventure with many underlying themes. At its core is the idea of religious faith. As a practitioner of Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam, Pi is a remarkably religious youth. He has a sophisticated perspective of the world and finds consolation in both zoology and religion. With only a 450-pound Bengal tiger named Richard Parker and a throng of sharks to keep him company in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, Pi must rely on his own faith and devotion to God to retain his hope of survival and self-preservation. Pi’s story investigates faith and love of God through the lens of a physical world depicted as wondrous, brutal, and deeply mystifying. The Life of Pi presents a gripping and credible case for religious faith because of Pi’s embracing of major religions, Pi’s encounters with animals as religious symbols, and Pi’s religious faith and will to live at sea.
Pi Patel has strong religious conviction, as evident in his simultaneous practice of Hinduism, Christianity, and Islam. Near the beginning of the novel, he poses a question to the reader: “We are all born like Catholics, aren’t we – in limbo, without religion, until some figure introduces us to God?” (Martel 47). In response to his own question, Pi relates his personal experience involving his first encounter with religion. As a baby, Pi experiences a “Hindu rite of passage” (47). Growing up, Pi becomes rooted in his Hindu faith and claims, “It is my heart that commands me so. I feel at home in a Hindu temple” (48). For Pi, Hinduism is “more than rite and ritual” (48); Hinduism is a way of life. Jonathan Kiefer comments, “[Pi’s] spiritual affairs are rendered with loving care” (screen 1). Throughout the novel, Pi addresses the symbolism and meaning of religion. Not limiting his religious devotion to attending services and daily worship, Pi attempts to interpret the world through religion. He asserts, “The universe makes sense to me through Hindu eyes. . . . With [Hinduism’s] notions in mind I see my place in the universe” (48-49). He believes the gods of Hinduism to be the components of the universe; for example, Brahman, the ultimate power in Hinduism, is said to be the world soul whose clothes are space and time. Pi considers the Hindu gods as the path that allows humans to touch their souls. Believing that the Hindu gods lead to liberation, Pi expresses deep reverence towards them: “My heart still skips a beat when I catch sight of the murti, of God Residing, in the inner sanctum of a temple” (48). His deep faith is also shown through his various references to the Hindu gods and their stories. In Chapter 17, Pi compares Jesus Christ to the Hindu gods by retelling many stories exemplifying the gods’ powers. One story he relates concerns the god Krishna, who was once wrongly accused of eating dirt when he was a baby. His foster mother, Yashoda, scolds him and asks him to open his mouth. When Krishna obeys her, Yashoda “sees in Krishna’s mouth the whole complete entire timeless universe” (55). In another story, Pi relates the incarnation of Vishnu as Vamana the dwarf. In the story, Vishnu requests of demon king Bali the ownership of the land he can cover in three strides. Bali scoffs and consents. Vishnu instantly restores himself to his cosmic size: “With one stride he covers the earth, with the second the heavens, and with the third he boots Bali into the netherworld” (55). In another tale, Pi tells of Rama, most human of Hindu avatars, in his struggle to return Sita, his wife, back from Ravana, the evil king of Lanka. Rama is said to have “strength no man could have and weapons no man could handle” (55). In these stories, Pi expresses his admiration for Hinduism and its chronicles. In Chapter 60, Pi describes one night as being especially serene and enlightening. In his description, Pi declares, “I felt like the sage Markandeya, who fell out of Vishnu’s mouth while Vishnu was sleeping and so beheld the entire universe, everything that there is” (177). In another instance, Pi thanks Lord Vishnu for the capture of a dorado: “Once you saved the world by taking the form of a fish. Now you have saved me by taking the form of a fish. Thank you, thank you!” (185). He once relates the labor demanded when trying to haul a sea turtle aboard the lifeboat and mentions, “It was a labour that demanded feats of strength worthy of Hanuman” (196). Evident through Pi’s constant referrals to Hinduism, the Indian youth is reminded of his faith on daily occurrences.
Although a devout Hindu follower, Pi does not halt his religious pursuit with Hinduism alone. He claims, “Lord Krishna led me to meet [Jesus Christ one holiday]” (50). During a vacation to Munnar, Pi notices three religious houses crowning the top of three hills. One afternoon, Pi ventures into the Christian church atop one of the hills. In doing so, Pi first encounters a “torture scene” (53). He later learns that the scene depicts the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The next afternoon, Pi speaks with the priest, Father Martin, who relates the story of Jesus Christ. Pi, however, is befuddled: “What? Humanity sins but it’s God’s Son who pays the price?” (53). Pi is not satisfied with the story of Jesus Christ and asks Father Martin for another story. In reply, Father Martin claims that Christianity “had one Story, and to it [Christians] came back again and again, over and over” (53). Pi does not fully comprehend the significance of the story and begins to question aspects of Christ’s death. Pi states, “Divinity should not be blighted by death. It’s wrong” (54). The young boy ponders why God would wish death upon Himself; why God did not leave death to the mortals; why God acted the way he did when he was wrongfully accused; and why God, in human manifestation, did not bear children to continue His work. Father Martin’s answer to Pi’s questions is love. Pi is bewildered and states, “He bothered me, this Son. Every day I burned with greater indignation against Him, found more flaws to Him” (56). However, Pi claims that “the more [he] learned about Him, the less [he] wanted to leave Him” (57). It is this persistent curiosity that ultimately leads to Pi’s desire to become a Christian. Before the departure from Munnar, Pi expresses his wish to become a Christian to Father Martin. Father Martin replies, “You already are, Piscine – in your heart. Whoever meets Christ in good faith is a Christian. Here in Munnar, you met Christ” (57). Pi is overjoyed and thanks Lord Krishna “for having put Jesus of Nazareth, whose humanity [he] found so compelling, in [his] way” (58). Pi then wishes to become baptized. Pi describes the water of his baptism having “the refreshing effect of a monsoon rain” (77). In this unique perspective of the story of Jesus Christ, Martel presents to the reader a gripping case for religious faith in his fresh outlook on religion.
Hardly a year after Pi embraces Christianity, Islam follows. In a Muslim quarter near his father’s zoo, Pi meets a Muslim bread seller. After a short introduction, the baker Satish Kumar leads Pi into his house to show him how to make his specialty breads. While inside, both hear the nasal call of the muezzin, the Muslim crier, from the mosque. In response to this call to prayer, Mr. Kumar excuses himself to retrieve a prayer carpet from the next room. Pi then witnesses the Muslim pray by muttering Arabic and bowing four times. The image of Muslim prayer instills itself into the mind of Pi, who describes the prayer as “quick, necessary, physical, muttered, striking” (60). After this first encounter with Islam, Pi visits Mr. Kumar and asks the baker about his religion. Mr. Kumar replies, “It is about the Beloved” (60). Pi instantly feels drawn towards Islam and comments, “I challenge anyone to understand Islam, its spirit, and not to love it. It is a beautiful religion of brotherhood and devotion” (61). Pi sees Islam as a loving union between God and follower. He also finds the Muslim place of worship, the mosque, very appealing for its “open construction, to God and to breeze” (61). In addition, Pi claims to feel deep religious contact in the fashion of Muslim prayer: “It felt good to bring my forehead to the ground” (61). Under the leadership of Mr. Kumar, Pi prays and practices dhikr, the recitation of the ninety-nine revealed names of God. Mr. Kumar proves to be an especially effective Muslim instructor to Pi because he is a hafiz, one who knows the Qur’an, the holy book of Islam, by heart. The language of Islam, Arabic, also draws Pi, who declares to love its sound: “The guttural eruptions and long flowing vowels rolled just beneath my comprehension like a beautiful brook. I gazed into this brook for long spells of time. It was not wide, just one man’s voice, but it was as deep as the universe” (62). He implies that Arabic is the language of God and with its sounds, Muslims feel the gap between mortality and divinity shrink. From witnessing Muslim prayer, Pi embraces the Muslim religion and proclaims the union of the gods of Hinduism and Islam, “Atman met Allah” (62).
Pi’s belief in the union between religions is a manifestation of his dedication to loving God. He claims that the “presence of God is the finest of rewards” (63). Underneath the formality and differences in the three religions, Pi realizes the one theme that binds the three together: love. Dina Georgis states, “Compelled by each of their faith stories, Pi decides he cannot choose between the religions and instead follows all three with much ease and synchronicity. Pi’s God is plural because he could not see the sense in choosing between three good stories” (screen 3). The significance of Pi’s devotion to God is exemplified in the novel when he loses everything and must rely on this faith to live.
In addition to Pi’s embracing of major religions, another aspect of the novel that presents a gripping case for religious faith is the spiritual symbolism in the animals. At the start of the novel, Pi describes his double-major Bachelor’s degree in religious studies and zoology. Pamela Cooper says, “The linking of religion and physicality--especially the diverse physicality of animals--is established at the start of the novel, when the adult Pi describes the double major of religious studies and zoology he took for his bachelor's degree at the University of Toronto” (screen 5). Pi states that he finds consolation in religion and zoology: “Academic study and the steady, mindful practice of religion slowly brought me back to life [from my ordeal at sea]” (3). Justine Jordan comments, “Faith and science, two marveling perspectives on the world, coexist throughout the book in a fine, delicate balance” (screen 3). Pi’s fascination with the study of animals enables him to discover their uniqueness. The uniqueness of animals enthralls Pi. When Pi is working on his zoology thesis on the analysis of the three-toed sloth, he claims, “The three-toed sloth, such a beautiful example of the miracle of life, reminded me of God” (5). Pi sees the stagnant movement of the sloth and its ability to blend in with its surroundings as testimony to the everyday miracles of life.
Pi’s upbringing in his father’s zoo in Pondicherry further captures the spiritual blend of religion and zoology. In Chapter 4, as Pi relates his childhood upbringing in the Pondicherry Zoo, he describes the unique characteristics of all the animals within the zoo. He expresses his admiration for these animals: “I wish I could convey the perfection of a seal slipping into water or a spider monkey swinging from point to point or a lion merely turning its head. But language founders in such seas. Better to picture it in your head if you want to feel it” (15). Jordan says, “Pi is a creature of faith (or faiths) who sees eternally renewed wonder in God and his creation” (screen 2). When Pi expresses his thoughts that animals appreciate their enclosed habitats in zoos as humans do their homes, he claims that animals have more freedom within the zoos because of the lack of predators, food shortages, parasites, and territorial conflicts. He says, “I know zoos are no longer in people’s good graces. Religion faces the same problem. Certain illusions about freedom plague them both” (19). In this statement, Pi demonstrates how closely he relates religion to zoology.
Pi not only learns from the animals of the zoo, but also from the people who visit it. Mr. Satish Kumar, a regular visitor to the zoo, is an atheistic biology teacher who becomes Pi’s favorite teacher in secondary school. Pi claims that it is because of Mr. Kumar that he studied zoology at the University of Toronto. He says, “I felt a kinship with him. It was my first clue that atheists are my brothers and sisters of a different faith, and every word they speak speaks of faith. Like me, they go as far as the legs of reason will carry them – and then they leap” (28). Throughout the novel, this “leap of faith” is presented as a challenge to the reader to have religious faith in a world full of uncertainty and doubt. Even near the end of the novel, Pi indirectly begs the reader to take a leap of faith: “Love is hard to believe, ask any lover. Life is hard to believe, ask any scientist. God is hard to believe, ask any believer. What is your problem with hard to believe?” (297). In one scene at the Pondicherry zoo, Pi’s biology teacher and Pi’s Muslim instructor, both named Mr. Kumar, visit the zoo and wonder at the figure of a zebra. Cooper comments, “In a moving, sweetly comic scene, these two identically named yet philosophically opposed father figures are united in their wonder at a zebra eating carrots from their hands” (screen 7). In a brief exchange between Pi and the two men, they express their admiration for the creature: “Mr. Kumar [says], ‘Equus burchelli boehmi.’ Mr. Kumar [says], ‘Allahu akbar.’ [Pi says], ‘It’s very pretty’” (84). Mr. Kumar the biology teacher gives the scientific name of the zebra, while the other gives the Arabic expression Allahu akbar meaning, “God is great.” Cooper describes, “This moment captures the spiritual import of the physical body and suggests enchanted apprehension of that body as a means of philosophical and theological reconciliation among people” (screen 7). The zebra’s form is praised as a sign of God’s creation in the miraculous powers of nature. The essence of spiritual wonder continues to promote religious faith, even in conjunction with science.
Pi’s enthrallment with the animals from the zoo and in nature presents devout faith in the miracles of life. A setting that further establishes the novel’s animals as symbols of religious faith is aboard the lifeboat. Cooper says, “In the novel, the marvelous body of the animal becomes both an image of God and a sign of the inexplicable cruelty of the world” (screen 7). Apart from the sloth as an image of divinity, the zebra is used to present a martyr. When the Japanese cargo ship Tsimtsum begins to sink, Pi is thrown into a lifeboat. Shortly after landing, a large male Grant zebra jumps from the cargo ship, “leaping with the grace of a racehorse” (105). However, it “[lands] with a loud crash on the last bench, smashing it and shaking the whole lifeboat” (105). The zebra breaks its rear leg and becomes a victim of the hyena aboard the lifeboat. It is mauled by the hyena and becomes disemboweled, yet still clings to life. Pi is appalled: “I was horrified. I had no idea a living being could sustain so much injury and go on living” (128). In this violent scene, the zebra becomes a martyr to the senseless brutality of life. Cooper says, “Martel uses the zebra’s suffering to emphasize the Christian virtues of patience and love” (screen 7). The novel seems to imply that in this brutal world, the endurance of pain, as evident by the story of Jesus Christ and the zebra, has deep religious meaning.