In part the answer to this question depends on whether you see Richard Parker as a real tiger or as a figment of Pi's imagination, but let's start with Richard Parker the tiger. Richard Parker helped Pi to survive by, essentially, giving him both a reason to and the will to live. Neither one of them could survive at sea without the other. Not only did Richard Parker help Pi stay alive (for example, by killing the Frenchman), but taking care of Richard Parker (by helping him eat) meant that Pi had a reason to wake up in the morning that meant more than going through the motions of surviving by himself.
On the other hand, Richard Parker remained a carnivorous animal through and through. In other words, Pi was always in danger from him. Every time he had to fight off Richard Parker or escape to avoid being eaten, it reminded him that he wanted to live. That gave him the strength and willpower to live through his ordeal.
Taking Richard Parker as an allegory (in Pi's "real story," where Richard Parker is a metaphor for himself and the other animals are the other passengers on the raft), he can be seen to represent the war of faith that Pi goes through. He prays to the Christian, Islamic, and Hindu gods to help keep him alive, relying on them for support, but he also has serious doubts about religion and sometimes clashes against it like he's fighting the tiger. In this version of the narrative, Richard Parker also becomes an allegory for the power of story itself; by making up a companion, even an adverserial one, Pi keeps himself going. Either way, Richard Parker becomes the main thing that keeps his heart and mind going.
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