What were Sai Baba's teachings on the value of argumentation and intellectual debate?

Sai Baba strongly advised against argumentation and intellectual debate as a path to spiritual truth. As recorded in Chapter 2, he stated, "Where there is a mind for argumentation, there is abundance of ignorance and Maya." He taught that such a mindset is filled with "bad thoughts and false logic" and makes a person unfit for self-knowledge, leading only to unhappiness. Baba's direct instruction was, "Do not establish your own side, do not refute the other side, Do not engage in dualistic explanations. Why such useless effort?" This teaching was particularly relevant for the author, Hemadpant, who himself was prone to debate before he surrendered to the Satguru's wisdom.