Why was Sai Baba so against the practice of fasting for spiritual reasons?

Sai Baba's philosophy was that fasting hinders spiritual progress because the mind of a fasting person cannot be peaceful. As explained in Chapter 32, he taught that God is not attained on an empty stomach and one must first "satisfy the soul of the self." He believed that without the strength provided by food, the senses become weak and lose their capacity for spirituality. For instance, he questioned how one could see God, describe His glory, or hear His praise without sustenance. The text explicitly states that the trouble of fasting and penance "doesn't work with Sai," emphasizing his view that it was an ineffective path to God-realization.