Bow in a mosque, kneel in a temple, or pray in a church. Just as a flower cannot bloom without sunshine, a man cannot live without a spiritual life. Yann Martel’s novel, Life of Pi, is an exceptional piece of literature that reinforces an individual’s belief in God. Piscine Molitor Patel, also known as Pi, is a teenage boy who was born under the Hindu religion; however, a whole new world of spiritual beliefs unravels as he discovers the Bible and Quran. Religion provides individuals with the opportunity to perceive life uniquely based on their beliefs, values, and moral compasses. Adding on, belief, in a higher power, explains miraculous occurrences that take place in this world, which science itself cannot explain. Eventually, spiritual beliefs preserve a person’s mental state by creating a sense of hope for them to adhere to. By examining a different view on life, unexplained existences, and maintaining sanity through demoralizing experiences, the reader can identify that this is an educational story about religion that is trying to push one’s faith in higher superiority and put an end to contemporary conflicts caused by religious beliefs.
Primarily, it is quite educating to view Pi’s perception of God as it can create interest within people and help them pursue their faith. Nowadays, society has become close-minded and uninviting to new ideas which not only hinders the growth of themselves but also the ones around them. To prosper, a person should be diverse, understanding, and open to all beliefs. Piscine is the perfect example of a young Omnist because he can respect and recognize a multitude of religions. After practicing Hinduism from birth, Pi later adopts Christianity and Islam, allowing him to view different perspectives of the world and gain knowledge. Pi’s one goal is to love God; and because of this, he can focus on the commonality instead of the differences as he states, “To me, religion is about our dignity, not our depravity” (Martel 79). Pi tries to get his message across and wants everyone to know that religion is about the good traits in people and that one should focus on what religion has to offer, instead of what it takes away. Throughout Pi’s extraordinary journey, we see him develop into an ideal man, as he has diverse views on religion in comparison to his family and the people of Pondicherry. He also disagrees with the idea that people from different faiths are not able to go to heaven. Pi displays these traits at a young age once he starts to see the world differently, which turns out to be beneficial for his quest later on. Being able to recognize a variety of spiritual beliefs helps an individual grow and empowers their devotion to God. However, that is not the only reason as to why this story furthers one’s belief in higher superiority as unexplained existence in this world comes to be.
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In addition, to strengthen one’s belief in God, it is critical to acknowledge the fact that religion preserves belief, whereas science is simply based on what is observed. Humans need light, water, and oxygen, to stay alive. The convenience of having exactly what humans need to survive available is no coincidence. There are miraculous occurrences in this world that should be left alone to God and his creations. Several scenarios in Pi’s journey demonstrate this concept. As he encounters a mysterious floating island, Pi states, “I made an exceptional botanical discovery. But there will be many who disbelieve the following episode. Still, I give it to you now because it's part of the story and it happened to me”(Martel 284). A carnivorous island made out of pure algae, with no other organism and no roots. Pi believes that this is a blessing from God and that this experience was created for Pi to continue his journey to prosper and improve both physically and mentally. Pi creates a biblical allusion as he encounters an orange fruit, he compares his situation to the Garden of Eden and the Forbidden Fruit. This means that even though he is undergoing strange situations, he still has his faith at the back of his mind. This faith allows Pi to understand situations and handle them effectively instead of giving up. Religion is there to provide an answer to questions that cannot be explained by humans and to fill gaps that man and science could not fill themselves.
Lastly, spiritual belief can improve people’s mental health as it provides motivation, and encourages positivity through dark times. Pi’s faith in God played a crucial part in his survival, while Pi was stranded on the lifeboat, he occupied his time with various rituals and routines each day. These actions ultimately saved his life in many ways. Being mentally healthy and present is essential for survival. Had Pi not been sane throughout his journey, he would have lost hope and died at the beginning. The constant spiritual belief from all three different religions not only kept him occupied but also gave him a sense of aspiration. Being mentally strong allowed Pi to inherit some life-saving traits, as he was in the middle of nowhere drifting in the Pacific hoping to survive another day, he states, “I practiced religious rituals that I adapted to the circumstances Masses without priests or consecrated Communion hosts, darshans without murtis, and pujas with turtle meat for prasad, acts of devotion to Allah not knowing where Mecca was and getting my Arabic wrong. They brought me comfort, that is certain” (Martel 231). Pi held on to his religious beliefs and still loved God, despite the hardships. Pi’s optimism allowed him to achieve the unachievable. Instead of losing hope in such a terrible situation, he created a positive outcome. He separates himself from constricting ideas and keeps sane to survive. Piscine knew that as long as God was with him, he would not die and this mental belief was key for him to flourish. Something he did to keep his hopes from wavering and his mind in check was having faith. In addition, it gave him the courage to look forward to another day. At first, Pi wondered what he did to deserve this, but as time went on he realized that this was a quest for his identity. He thought of every weather, resource, and state as a blessing, therefore, he always rightfully thanked God throughout his journey.
To conclude, Life of Pi, by Yann Martel portrays a multitude of perceptions on life, miraculous occurrences, and mental strength, in which one can see that this is a didactic story about faith, supporting one’s belief in God and attempting to put an end to contemporary conflicts caused by religious beliefs. Faith allows individuals the chance to understand a simple life. The supernatural in this world should be left to higher superiority because studies alone can not battle against it. Inner beliefs maintain a person’s frame of mind by creating a sense of hope for them to hold onto. A teenage boy, Pi Patel goes through a series of tragedies within his journey. He Piscine experiences the misfortune of losing his loved ones in a shipwreck but continues to preserve his faith in God. Pi spends 227 days on a lifeboat, through this Yann Martel shows us that even though higher superiority will not respond immediately, the results of the prayers will eventually come in a most beneficial form.
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