A motif throughout A River Sutra is the narrator’s defensive or confused reactions to the stories he hears and to the commentary other characters provide on those stories. For example, after telling Tariq Mia the story of the Jain monk, Ashok, Tariq Mia behaves as though the meaning of Ashok’s “one love” was obvious. This reaction upsets the narrator, who quickly asks for elaboration, at which point Tariq Mia explains that Ashok’s love was figurative, referring to humanity’s capacity for love. Tariq Mia’s response encourages the narrator to review Ashok’s story, looking for ways to reframe it and develop a greater understanding of the story.

The novel includes this motif of the narrator’s confusion in order to encourage reinterpretations of the stories in the novel. At first, a story is presented as the narrator perceives it, followed by the narrator’s confusion or indignation, which then leads to another interpretation of the story. The most noteworthy moment of confusion and indignation in the novel occurs at the conclusion, in which the narrator does not understand how Professor Shankar could be the Naga Baba; he even rejects the idea that the Naga Baba could reenter the world.