If Sai Baba is eternal, how should I understand the event of him 'leaving the body' as described in the Satcharita?

Chapter 43 presents Sai Baba's departure not as a conventional death but as a voluntary, yogic act. It states that Sai Samarth could die at will and chose to burn his body 'in the fire of Yoga,' merging himself into his unmanifest state. The text questions who would believe he truly 'left the body,' suggesting this is a limited perspective. His passing is likened to a solar eclipse, which is merely a 'defect of vision' for the observer. The body is described as a mere adjunct, and his departure was a transition from a manifest form to his true, unmanifest self, where he remains in the hearts of his devotees.