Did Sai Baba engage in austerities or have specific dietary preferences?

The accounts in Chapter 23 reveal that Sai Baba did not engage in traditional austerities or fasting. His approach to food was marked by profound simplicity and detachment. He would go to certain houses daily to ask for dry or moist bread, and these alms, known as Madhukari, were His only food. The text emphasizes that He did not indulge His tongue, pamper His sense of taste, or crave sweets. He accepted whatever was obtained, whether good or plain, considering it all sweet. This practice demonstrates His detachment from sensory pleasures and His focus on maintaining the body as a means to liberation, free from ego.