Why did Baba believe that eating was a prerequisite for devotion and realizing God?

Sai Baba's philosophy, as detailed in Chapter 32, was that physical well-being is essential for spiritual practice. He argued that God is not attained on an empty stomach because hunger weakens the senses, making devotion impossible. The text poses rhetorical questions: without the strength from food, how can the eyes see God, the tongue describe His glory, or the ears hear it? Therefore, all senses need the strength provided by food to have the capacity for spirituality. Baba's teaching was to "first tie bread to the waist" before contemplating spirituality, because without a peaceful soul, which comes from satisfying hunger, one cannot realize God.