Cleanliness and sanctity in all conditions are
characteristics of pure beings and necessities of free souls. The first
perfection consists in cleanliness and sanctity and in purity from every
defect. When man in all conditions is pure and immaculate, he will become the
center of the reflection of the manifest Light. In all his actions and conduct
there must first be purity, then beauty and independence. The channel must be
cleansed before it is filled with sweet water. The pure eye comprehendeth the
sight and the meeting of God; the pure nostril inhaleth the perfumes of the
rose-garden of bounty; the pure heart becometh the mirror of the beauty of
truth. This is why, in the heavenly Books, the divine counsels and commands
have been compared to water. So, in the Koran it is said, "and we have
caused a pure water to descend from heaven;" and in the Gospel,
"Except a man hath received the baptism of water and of the spirit, he
cannot enter into the Kingdom of God." Then it is evident that the divine
teachings are the heavenly grace and the showers of the mercy of God, which
purify the hearts of men. (‘Abdu'l-Baha, Tablets of ’Abdu'l-Baha vol. 3)
