My Prayer Rug

Ever since I got here, I have been thinking about a passage in Life of Pi, by Yann Martel. It is where Pi is talking about how much he loves his prayer rug. It was one of my favorite parts of the book. I really like the idea of daily meditation, so I have been on the look out for a prayer rug to buy. I didn't want to spend a lot of money, since this was more for novelty than anything else. I found one last night at Carrefour (our "Wal-mart") for 12 Riyals ($3.28 USD), so I got it.

In honor of the occasion, here is the quote from Pi:

"I loved my prayer rug. Ordinary in quality though it was, it glowed with a beauty in my eyes. I am sorry I lost it. Wherever I laid it I felt special affection for the patch of ground beneath it and the immediate surrounding, which to me is a clear indication that it was a good prayer rug because it helped me remember that the earth is the creation of God and sacred the same all over...When I prayed, the short unknotted tassels were inches from the tip of my forehead at one end of the carpet and inches from the tip of my toes at the other, a cozy size to make you feel at home anywhere upon this vast earth."

--Life of Pi, by Yann Martel, ch. 27 page 76