LIFE OF PI - FREE ONLINE CHAPTER SUMMARY

CHAPTER 17

Summary

Pi continues his discussion of religion. While on vacation in Munnar, Pi notices there are three hills, each with a “Godhouse,” one Hindu temple, one mosque, and one Christian church. Hindu is the foundation for his first notion of faith and this faith leads him to “meet Jesus Christ.” Pi watches a priest from a distance and he is moved by the priest’s appearance of offering love and guidance. Timid and confused, Pi enters the church wondering which “murti” was supposed to represent the Catholic god.

The next day Pi goes into the rectory and meets Father Martin. The priest explains that Christianity revolves around the belief that God sent His Son to suffer and die for man’s sins, and then the Son was resurrected. Pi tries intensely to understand this and makes several comparisons of the stories of Hindu gods to the story of the Christian God. Over the next few days Pi meets for tea again and again with Father Martin in attempt to shed light on his confusion. Father Martin answers all of Pi’s questions and objections with, “Love.” Eventually Pi understands the meaning of love in the story of God’s Son and is inspired to run to Father Martin to ask to be a Christian. With the priest’s blessing, Pi goes into the church and prays to Christ. He then leaves and goes to the Hindu temple to thank Lord Krishna for bringing Jesus into his life.

Notes

The irony of involving Krishna in being introduced to Christ is obvious. However, this does not seem incongruous to Pi. He is used to the many manifestations of one God due to his Hindu background. To him, another story does not conflict with his existing beliefs, but enhances them giving Pi yet another way to know God.

CHAPTERS 18, 19, 20

Summary

A year later, Pi feels the same timid curiosity he had about a church, this time about the Great Mosque. He describes the building, but dares not go in. He wanders along the adjacent buildings to a bakery. Here, while speaking to the owner, Pi hears the muezzin (a servant at the mosque who leads the call to prayer), and in response the owner immediately excuses himself. Pi watches the owner go through the gestures and prayers of Muslim worship. Later, while kneeling still at church, Pi remembers the yoga-like physical Islamic way of praying.

Pi returns to the bakery to inquire about Islam. The man tells Pi, “It is about the Beloved.” They go together to the mosque and Pi takes pleasure in bowing to the ground to pray.

The baker is also a Sufi, a Muslim mystic. His name is Satish Kumar, the same as PiÂ’s biology teacher. Pi prays with him and feels that Mr. KumarÂ’s home is a sacred place. One day, on his way home from praying with Mr. Kumar, Pi experiences a profound feeling of the connectedness of all things natural and divine. He recounts a later experience of the nearness of God that happened in Canada. He had a vision of the Virgin Mary (in Christianity, the Mother of Christ).

Pi is now happily practicing three religions. “The presence of God is the finest of rewards.”

Notes

Two of the themes are brought out in these chapters, the syncretic approach to religion and the importance of the better story. Regardless of the methods of worship, to Pi, it is all about believing in something beyond the tangible. This belief allows Pi to experience the better story. “Atman met Allah.” The universal spiritual force and God have come together.

The third theme is also hinted at, the idea that science and religion are both ways to understand the world. Mr. Kumar the teacher and Mr. Kumar the Sufi are both the “prophets” of Pi’s youth. One inspires him to science, the other to religion. There is also a real-life Satish Kumar. He is a former Jain monk from India who literally walked across the world to promote disarmament and raise awareness of the beauty and connectedness of all things. His book, Path Without Destination, describes his journey and his beliefs and makes him a likely inspiration for the characters of Mr. and Mr. Kumar.

CHAPTER 21

Summary

The author reflects on his afternoon with Pi. He writes down his impressions of Pi’s concepts of “dry, yeastless factuality” and “the better story.”

Notes

This brief reflection demonstrates that the author understands PiÂ’s perspective on life. He understands the common thread of PiÂ’s three religions, love. Though only half a page long, Chapter 21 represents the heart of the novel. Along with the paragraph that follows, i.e. Chapter 22, the whole point of the novel is revealed.

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