Excellence of Buying Wheat and Food

سَمِعْتُ أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع يَقُولُ‌ شِرَاءُ الْحِنْطَةِ يَنْفِي الْفَقْرَ وَ شِرَاءُ الدَّقِيقِ يُنْشِئُ الْفَقْرَ وَ شِرَاءُ الْخُبْزِ مَحْقٌ قَالَ قُلْتُ لَهُ أَبْقَاكَ اللَّهُ فَمَنْ لَمْ يَقْدِرْ عَلَى شِرَاءِ الْحِنْطَةِ قَالَ ذَاكَ لِمَنْ يَقْدِرُ وَ لَا يَفْعَلُ.

’Buying wheat removes poverty but buying flour brings poverty and buying bread is destruction.’ I (the narrator) then asked, ‘I pray to Allah to grant you long life, what about one who is not able to buy wheat?’ He (the Imam) replied, ’That is for one who is capable but does not do so.’”

إِذَا كَانَ عِنْدَكَ دِرْهَمٌ فَاشْتَرِ بِهِ الْحِنْطَةَ فَإِنَّ الْمَحْقَ فِي الدَّقِيقِ.

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), has said, ‘If you have one dirham buy wheat with it; buying flour is destruction.’”

قَالَ لِي أَبُو عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع‌ يَا أَبَا الصَّبَّاحِ شِرَاءُ الدَّقِيقِ ذُلٌّ وَ شِرَاءُ الْحِنْطَةِ عِزٌّ وَ شِرَاءُ الْخُبْزِ فَقْرٌ فَنَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الْفَقْرِ.

“Abu ‘Abd Allah (a.s.), once said to me, ‘O abu al-Sabbah, buying flour is humiliation, buying wheat is honor and buying bread is poverty; we seek protection with Allah against poverty.’”