Mining is the process of spending computing power to process transactions, secure the network, and keep everyone in the system synchronized together. It can be perceived like the Bitcoin data center except that it has been designed to be fully decentralized with miners operating in all countries and no individual having control over the network. This process is referred to as "mining" as an analogy to gold mining because it is also a temporary mechanism used to issue new bitcoins. Unlike gold mining, however, Bitcoin mining provides a reward in exchange for useful services required to operate a secure payment network. Mining will still be required after the last bitcoin is issued.
source: https://bitcoin.org/en/faq#mining

Basically you get rewarded for securing the network using hardware.
I'd suggest that you read that entire page to learn everything you need to know about Bitcoin.


I hope you understand the fundamental difference between buying and mining now.