Having just experienced the sinking of his family’s ship, and being put onto a lifeboat with only a hyena, Pi felt completely lost and alone. When he sees Richard Parker, the Bengal tiger from his family’s zoo, it is a familiar face to him. His initial reaction is to save the life of his familiar friend so that he may have a companion and a protector aboard the lifeboat. Suddenly Pi realizes just what he is doing. He is saving the life of Richard Parker, by welcoming him, a 450 pound Bengal tiger, onto the small lifeboat.
He experiences a change of heart when helping the tiger onto the boat. Pi realizes that he is now posing a threat on his own life. With Richard Parker on the boat, Pi is faced with not only the fight to survive stranded in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, but the fight to survive living with a meat eating tiger. The change of heart that Pi experiences might possibly mean that he is an impulsive thinker. It may mean that he often does something on impulse without thinking it through, and then later regrets his actions.
How does Pi maintain his religious beliefs while on the boat?
Pi maintains his religious beliefs while on the life boat through his daily prayers.
He takes time aside each day to say the prayers that he always would say. In one instance, he turns where he believes Mecca is located, and prays his traditional prayers towards Mecca. Pi also often states that he will include specific animals in his prayers, such as the zebra aboard his lifeboat, and the first fish that he ever killed. With Pi keeping his ritual prayers going, it helped him to survive. He was able to somewhat maintain the religious lifestyle he had prior to the sinking of the Tsimtsum. We also find him making many religious affiliations throughout his journey.
He made comparisons between that of Orange Juice, the orangutan, and the Virgin Mary, and would also often bring up Jesus on the cross. Truly, Pi’s religious faith remained strong throughout his journey on the Pacific Ocean.
