Why did Sai Baba believe that eating was a necessary prerequisite for any spiritual practice or realization?

Sai Baba taught that God cannot be attained on an empty stomach and that one must first satisfy their own soul with food. As explained in Chapter 32, he believed that a fasting person's mind is not peaceful, which nullifies any potential spiritual benefit. The text states that without a morsel of food, the sense organs become wretched and forget their skills. Baba's philosophy was that one should "first eat a piece of bread" because without it, the soul cannot find peace, making it impossible to realize God. He felt that finding God on a hungry stomach was an idea that could not happen "even in imagination."