A few days after the religious leaders confront Pi’s parents on the esplanade, Pi goes to his father’s office and asks for two things: baptism and a prayer rug so he can pray outside without dirtying his pants. Pi explains that he wants proper Christian baptism while continuing to pray to Allah because he loves God.

Pi’s father reacts with confusion and skepticism, questioning why Pi wants to pray at all and insisting that prayer “won’t make any difference.” When Pi says he wants to be both Christian and Muslim, Pi’s father refuses, arguing the religions are separate and have nothing in common, and dismisses Pi’s points about shared figures like Abraham, Moses, and Jesus by saying, “We’re Indians!” He ends the conversation abruptly by telling Pi to speak to his mother.

Pi repeats the same request to his mother while she reads, but she initially tries to push him away by offering books, cycling through familiar authors and titles. Pi resists the distraction and insists the matter is important to him.

Pi’s mother finally engages, admitting she and Pi’s father find Pi’s religious zeal mysterious. She insists Pi must choose only one—Hindu, Christian, or Muslim—echoing the esplanade confrontation. Pi argues he can belong to all three, comparing it to Mamaji having two passports, but Pi’s mother counters that nations are earthly while there is only “one nation in the sky,” or none at all, framing religion as an outdated attachment.

Pi presses the logic, asking whether all “passports” should be valid if there is only one heavenly nation. His mother falters into uncertainty, grows weary, and cuts off the debate with exasperation when Pi invokes Gandhi.