What was the miracle Sai Baba performed with the chillum when he met Chand Patil?

After Chand Patil found his lost mare thanks to the Fakir's guidance, he returned to the spot under the mango tree. As described in Chapter 5, the Fakir (Sai Baba) then performed a wonder. He wanted to smoke his chillum but needed fire. He picked up a pair of tongs, known as a 'chimta', and thrust it directly into the earth right where he was sitting. He then pulled out a glowing ember from the ground itself and placed it on the chillum to light the tobacco. This act of creating fire from the earth amazed Chand Patil.