Antara topik-topik yang terkandung adalah:

Bahagian 1:  Bersyukur sebagai Muslim
Bersyukur sebagai Muslim                                                       
Bersyukur kerana Sifat Kemanusiaan 
Bersyukur kerana Keislaman Diri 
Muslim adalah Manusia Terbaik
Menjaga Diri daripada Perkara yang Merosakkan Iman                                                      

Bahagian 2: Membuktikan Diri Sebagai Muslim  
Bersihkan Hati                                                                                
Hiasi Kata-kata                                                                               
Perbuatan yang Bermanfaat                                                  
Beribadah dengan Sebaik-baiknya                                   
Sentiasa Memperbaik Diri                                                      
Menghormati Ibu Bapa                                                             
Membina Rumah Tangga                                                        
Memberi Manfaat kepada Orang Lain                           
Mencintai Dakwah dan Jihad                                                                   
Membina Ukhwah dan Silaturahim                                                                    

Bahagian 3: Agenda Hidup Muslim
Agenda Hidup Muslim                                                          
Agenda Harian, Bulanan, Tahunan dan Seumur Hidup                                                             
Nasihat-nasihat yang disampaikan oleh penulis amat mudah untuk dibaca dan diterima. Tetapi hanya dua perkara yang ingin saya kongsi bersama. Dalam Bahagian 1, penulis mengajak kita bersyukur kerana telah dilahirkan sebagai manusia dan juga dilahirkan dalam keadaan beragama Islam dan bukan beragama lain. Alhamdulillah syukur. 

Dalam Bahagian 2, saya ingin berkongsi apa yang ditulis dalam topik Membina Rumahtangga.

“Pernikahan adalah syariat Allah melalui pernikahan, kehidupan terpelihara dari penyelewengan kasih sayang timbul selepas diikat dengan ikatan pernikahan.”

“Apabila seseorang melalui perkahwinan, tanamkan niat yang kukuh iaitu niat beribadah kepada Allah. Rumahtangga dijamin mendapat ketenangan, kasih sayang dan rahmat. Ia menjadi permulaan yang baik. Rumah tangga yang berkat ini melahirkan generasi yang soleh dan mendapat kebahagiaan di dunia dan akhirat.”

Allah menjelaskan dalam surah Ar-Rum ayat 21 yang bermaksud: “Dan di antara tanda tanda kekuasaannya adalah dia menciptakan untukmu isteri-isteri daripada jenismu sendiri, supaya kamu cenderung dan berasa tenteram kepadanya, dan dijadikan di antara kamu kasih dan sayang. Sesungguhnya pada yang demikian itu benar-benar terdapat tanda-tanda bagi kaum yang berfikir.”

Penulis juga memberi tips bagaimana Cara Mendapatkan Pasangan Yang Baik. Antaranya adalah:

Kuatkan niat untuk beribadat
Kita perlu menjadi orang yang baik terlebih dahulu. Orang yang baik mendapat pasangan yang lebih baik
Perbaiki kualiti diri dan Allah bakal menurniakan jodoh yang baik
Perkuatkanlah pandangan zahir
Carilah antara orang-orang yang soleh dan di tempat-tempat yang terpuji

Ya Allah, semoga aku dapat sentiasa memperbaiki diri ya Allah. Semoga kita mendapat pasangan yang baik, insya-Allah. Amiin. 

Diharapkan dengan membaca buku ini dapat memberi manfaat kepada kita.

Orang beribadah, disangka riak
Orang yg relax, disangka malas
Orang yg pakai baju baru, disangka menunjuk
Orang yg pakai baju buruk, disangka zuhud dan hina
Orang makan banyak, disangka pelahap
Orang makan sikit, disangka kedekut

Orang baik disangka buruk
Orang buruk disangka baik
Orang senyum disangka mengejek
Orang masam disangka merajuk
Orang bermuzakarah disangka mengumpat
Orang diam disangka sombong atau tidak suka
Orang menawan disangka pakai susuk
Orang nampak ceria disangka lupa diri
Orang menegur, menasihat yg benar, pun disangka buruk sangka

Mana tahu yang diam itu kerana berzikir kpd Allah atau menarik diri
Mana tahu yang senyum itu kerana bersedekah
Mana tahu yang masam itu kerana mengenangkan dosa
Mana tahu yang menawan itu kerana bersih hati dan mindanya
Mana tahu yang ceria itu cergas cerdasnya
Mana tahu yang menegur, menasihat itu jujur dan ikhlas nawaitunya…

Jauhi sikap suka bersangka2 kerana ia bakal MEMUSNAHKAN UKHWAH
seperti musnahnya kayu dimakan api…

Tiap satu benda yg kita lihat, macam2 kesimpulan yg boleh kita buat
Semuanya berantung bagaimana kita melihatnya.

Going through the first part, it seemed like reading a National Geographic magazine with lots of facts about animals, not forgetting the examples given. Not one or two but a list of 10 of them. I was irritated by this in the first place, but once I got used to it, I enjoyed these information.  Religion is also the subject in the first part. It’s interesting to know the thoughts of one that have faith in multiple religions since I have a friend like that.

The second half was where the adventure started. Being stranded in a boat with an adult Bengal tiger, hyena, orang utan and zebra and the struggle to survive story was what kept me turning the pages. There’s a few gore scenes that made me uncomfortable. But truly, this harrowing journey of his was unforgettable. 

When the moment Pi retells the story at the last part in a more mundane but believable way, I felt a little cheated. At that time, I didn’t know which one was real and which one was not. It also made me doubted whether this was really a story that was told to the author. When I got to the last word, and finally close the book, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. 

But whatever the underlying theme of this book is, whichever story was real, what i realise from this book is that it is a tale that juxtaposes fact and fiction. That made sense to the ample of information given in the first half. It also made me think that we are after all storytellers, expressing our life experiences in a story form. I couldn’t express this better than Steve Koss did in his review at Amazon.com so I’m pasting it here:

“LIFE OF PI is an allegory, the symbolic expression of a deeper meaning through a tale acted out by humans, animals, and in this case, even plant life. Yann Martel has crafted a magnificently unlikely tale involving zoology and botany, religious experience, and ocean survival skills to explore the meaning of stories in our lives, whether they are inspired by religion to explain the purpose of life or generated by our own psyches as a way to understand and interpret the world around us. 

Martel employs a number of religious themes and devices to introduce religion as one of mankind’s primary filters for interpreting reality. Pi’s active adoption and participation in Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity establish him as a character able to relate his story through the lens of the world’s three major religions. Prayer and religious references abound, and his adventures bring to mind such Old Testament scenes as the Garden of Eden, Daniel and the lion’s den, the trials of Job, and even Jonah and the whale. Accepting Pi’s survival story as true, without supporting evidence, is little different than accepting New Testament stories about Jesus. They are matters of faith, not empiricism. 

In the end, however, LIFE OF PI takes a broader view. All people are storytellers, casting their experiences and even their own life events in story form. Martel’s message is that all humans use stories to process the reality around them, from the stories that comprise history to those that explain the actions and behaviors of our families and friends. We could never process the chaotic stream of events from everyday life without stories to help us categorize and compartmentalize them. Yet we all choose our own stories to accomplish this – some based on faith and religion, some based on empiricism and science. The approach we choose dictates our interpretation of the world around us.”

What do readers want? An incredible story or a story filled with dry facts? 
“I know what you want. You want a story that won’t surprise you. That will confirm what you already know. That won’t make you see higher or further or differently. You wan a flat story. An immobile story. You want dry, yeastless factuality.” (from the book)

The author brilliantly shows us how we would rather believe almost anything than be presented with unappealing truths. 

One thing for sure, Yann Martel is a master storyteller. I never have read a book that made me think and have emotions in this way.

Surah Al-Baqarah Ayat 216