١١ـ عِدَّةٌ مِنْ أَصْحَابِنَا عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ عَنِ الْحُسَيْنِ بْنِ سَعِيدٍ عَنْ أَخِيهِ الْحَسَنِ عَنْ زُرْعَةَ عَنْ سَمَاعَةَ عَنْ أَبِي عَبْدِ الله (عَلَيْهِ الْسَّلام) قَالَ سَأَلْتُهُ عَنِ الرَّجُلِ يَكُونُ لَهُ الدَّرَاهِمُ يَعْمَلُ بِهَا وَقَدْ وَجَبَ عَلَيْهِ فِيهَا الزَّكَاةُ وَيَكُونُ فَضْلُهُ الَّذِي يَكْسِبُ بِمَالِهِ كَفَافَ عِيَالِهِ لِطَعَامِهِمْ وَكِسْوَتِهِمْ لاَ يَسَعُهُ لأُدُمِهِمْ وَإِنَّمَا هُوَ مَا يَقُوتُهُمْ فِي الطَّعَامِ وَالْكِسْوَةِ قَالَ فَلْيَنْظُرْ إِلَى زَكَاةِ مَالِهِ ذَلِكَ فَلْيُخْرِجْ مِنْهَا شَيْئاً قَلَّ أَوْ كَثُرَ فَيُعْطِيهِ بَعْضَ مَنْ تَحِلُّ لَهُ الزَّكَاةُ وَلْيَعُدْ بِمَا بَقِيَ مِنَ الزَّكَاةِ عَلَى عِيَالِهِ وَلْيَشْتَرِ بِذَلِكَ آدَامَهُمْ وَمَا يُصْلِحُهُمْ مِنْ طَعَامِهِمْ مِنْ غَيْرِ إِسْرَافٍ وَلاَ يَأْكُلْ هُوَ مِنْهُ فَإِنَّهُ رُبَّ فَقِيرٍ أَسْرَفُ مِنْ غَنِيٍّ فَقُلْتُ كَيْفَ يَكُونُ الْفَقِيرُ أَسْرَفَ مِنَ الْغَنِيِّ فَقَالَ إِنَّ الْغَنِيَّ يُنْفِقُ مِمَّا أُوتِيَ وَالْفَقِيرَ يُنْفِقُ مِنْ غَيْرِ مَا أُوتِيَ.
11. A number of our people have narrated from Ahmad ibn Muhammad from al-Husayn ibn Sa‘id from his brother Zur’ah from Sama‘ah who has said the following: “I once asked abu ’Abd Allah, ‘Alayhi al-Salam, about a man who has a certain number of dirham which he uses in business, Zakat has become obligatory on him and his savings are enough for the expenses of his family, like food and clothes but not for cooking curry. It is only for their food and clothes. He (the Imam) said, ‘He waits for the Zakat of his assets, pays from it to the deserving beneficiaries a certain amount. What is left, he spends on his family to buy with it gravy curry for them and what is for their well being and food without excessiveness but he himself must not eat from it; because sometimes poor people act more excessively than affluent ones.’ I then asked, ‘How can that happen?’ He (the Imam) said, ‘Affluent people spend from what they earn, but poor people spend without earning.’” 