The text suggests Sai Baba preferred devotees to stay in the forest for salvation. Can you elaborate on this?

The premise of your question is incorrect according to the provided text. Chapter 18 explicitly states the opposite, noting, 'One does not need to go to the forest; God manifests in the Uddhava Gita.' This indicates that Sai Baba's teachings emphasized finding God through devotion and scriptural study within one's community, rather than through ascetic practices in seclusion. The chapter further elaborates that Baba arranged for daily readings of holy books like the Nath Bhagawat and Jnaneshwari in Sathe's Wada. He believed that those 'who perform the reading with faith attain God instantly.' This practice, as described in Chapter 18, assigned to devotees like Bapusaheb Jog, was Baba's way of providing spiritual guidance and salvation to souls without them needing to retreat to a forest.