What was the real reason Baba ground wheat in the mosque? It seems strange for someone who lived on alms.

The act of grinding wheat was not for making food, but a symbolic act to protect the village. As Chapter 1 explains, the village was suffering from a cholera epidemic. The wheat that Baba was grinding was not just grain; it represented the deadly disease itself. By grinding the "wheat" into "flour" and then having it thrown on the village boundary, Baba was symbolically crushing the epidemic and casting it out. The text confirms that after the flour was thrown near the stream on the boundary, the disease began to recede and the bad days ended, showcasing Baba's unique and powerful method of healing.