Why did Sai Baba make Kashiram carry powdered sugar to feed to ants, and how did this connect to the financial difficulties Baba put him through to crush his pride?

Your question combines two distinct events in Kashiram's life that had different origins. While it is true that Sai Baba orchestrated events to crush Kashiram's pride about giving Dakshina, which is detailed in Chapter 0, the instruction to feed ants did not come from Sai Baba. The texts clarify that it was another saint, Janakidas Baba, who advised Kashiram to feed sugar to ants. These two separate leelas, one from Sai Baba concerning pride and money and one from Janakidas Baba concerning feeding ants, both shaped Kashiram's spiritual journey but were not directly connected.