(176) It is related by Umama that the Apostle of God said: “My Lord offered to make the valley of Mecca full of gold for me [if I wanted to be rich], but I replied, ‘I do not want it [but prefer for myself such a state of want and poverty that] I may eat my fill one day and go without a meal on the other so that when I am hungry, I shall be humble to Thee, and when I am satisfied with food, I shall praise Thee and be grateful.”
-Musnad-i-Ahmad and Tirmidhi
Commentary.-It shows that the Prophet had voluntarily chosen the state of poverty and starvation in which his whole life was spent.