What were Maharaj's early practices for helping people in Shirdi, and did they change?

When Maharaj first arrived, he primarily helped people by providing medical care. As detailed in Chapter 0, he would give out medicines without ever accepting money. If a patient was not being cared for properly, he would even go and tend to them himself. Over time, his methods evolved. He later stopped giving medicine and instead began giving Udi, or sacred ash, which people also found beneficial. Maharaj explained this shift by telling a writer he called 'Kaka' that he stopped giving medicine and started chanting 'Hari Hari,' and through this practice, he 'met Hari.'