Thereupon say:
(Bahá’u’lláh, to Mulla Husayn Qazvini -- BH04421)
Prayers for purity: renewing the heart
prayer for purity; chastity
Editorial introduction
A believer is taught to ask God for a pure heart and a tranquil conscience, and the request opens into a whole inner landscape. A heart like a pearl; a breast widened by grace; a countenance lit by divine mysteries; a sincere intention and a spirit at rest. Purity here is not emptiness but room, cleared of self and desire so that love may be established there, cleared of idle fancies so that nearness becomes possible. The prayers reach for the body’s own gestures: water poured over the hands while one asks to be washed of every veil, a robe of detachment, light, a Pen that writes the verses of love on the tablet of the heart. Psalm 51 asks in the same key for a clean heart, a right spirit and the joy of salvation restored [1]. And the cleansing has a direction: it issues in trustworthiness, righteousness and steadfast service. From here one may go deeper into what purity of heart and sincerity of intention mean, into the wider life of prayer, and into the sanctity to which these petitions aspire.
Selected passages
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá -- AB11605)
With all humility and contrition I beseech Thy holy Kingdom and the luminous horizon of Thy mercy to grant this servant a pure heart, a breast expanded by the outpouring of Thy favors, a countenance radiant with the lights of Thy mysteries, a sincere intention in Thy Cause, a spirit at rest through Thy bounty and beneficence, and a goodly future through Thy grace and generosity.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, 1896-May-14, to Abdu'l-Karim Arbab -- AB03040)
I beseech Thee by Thy Most Holy, Most Glorious Beauty to make the hearts of Thy servants sanctified from self and desire, that Thy love may be established therein, O Thou Who hast raised up the heaven.
(Bahá’u’lláh -- BH11071)
O Lord! Sprinkle upon her heart from the depths of the ocean of Thy remembrance that which will attract her unto Thee and cause her to speak of Thy praise and glorification among Thy handmaidens. Then inscribe upon the tablet of her heart with Thy Most Exalted Pen the verses of Thy love and the mysteries of Thy knowledge in such wise that the affairs and manifestations of the world shall not efface them.
(Bahá’u’lláh, to Wife of Ismullah Jamal -- BH03357)
O my Lord! Purify the hearts of Thy servants from idle fancies and vain imaginings, then draw them nigh through Thy sovereignty unto a station wherein whosoever draweth nigh unto it becometh protected from the Most Great Terror.
(Bahá’u’lláh, 1297-11-12 [1880-Oct-16], to Siyyid Muhammad -- BH07783)
O Lord! O Lord! O Lord! O Lord! O Lord! O Lord! O Lord! O Lord! O Lord! Sanctify Thy loved ones from the promptings of self and passion, and adorn them with the ornament of holiness among Thy servants, O Lord of all being and Sovereign of the hereafter and the former times!
(Bahá’u’lláh, 1307 ? [1889-1890], to Mirza Ali Ashraf Lahijani ('Andalib) -- BH01488)
O Lord! Purify the souls from the conditions of those who are heedless of Thy remembrance, who oppose Thy Cause, who are negligent of Thy Covenant, who are veiled from Thy effulgence.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, to Haji Muhammad Rida -- AB09143)
Then purify me, O my Beloved, with the living waters of Thy Cause and the Kawthar of Thy paradise, that there may remain in my outward and inward being no trace of the odor of Thine enemies and mention of the oppressors among Thy creation, that I may be detached from all else save Thee and turn to the splendors of the lights of Thy countenance.
(Bahá’u’lláh, to Jinab -i Hi Kaf -- BH06687)
And when thou departest from that land and enterest another, perform ablutions, and while washing, call upon God, thy Lord and the Lord of all that is seen and unseen, and say:
"O my Lord! Even as Thou hast cleansed my body with this water, purify me from all that veils me from knowing Thee between earth and heaven.
(Bahá’u’lláh -- BH01025)
(Bahá’u’lláh, 1290 [1873] or earlier, to Khadijih Sultan daughter of Ammih -- BH07658)
Then cause me to drink, O my God, from the Kawthar of Thy bounty that which will purify me from all else save Thee and draw me nigh unto Thy good-pleasure.
(Bahá’u’lláh -- BH07302)
I beseech Thee by Thy Name through which all names were transformed from their kingdom and all attributes were brought down from their dominion, and through which the faces of the deniers were darkened while the lights of bliss shone forth from the faces of the sincere ones - to purify me, through the Kawthar of Thy grace and the Salsabil of Thy bounties, from whatsoever is abhorrent to Thy good-pleasure, that I may enter the kingdom of Thy generosity and the dominion of Thy favors, and hearken unto the wondrous melodies of Thy voice, and behold with mine eyes the splendors of the light of Thy countenance.
(Bahá’u’lláh -- BH08833)
O Lord! Clothe me with the robe of forgiveness and purify me from whatsoever prevents me from turning to Thee, O Thou in Whose hand is the dominion of grace and bounty!
(Bahá’u’lláh, 1290 [1873] or earlier, to Aqa Siyyid Javad Qaf -- BH03192)
My Lord! Sanctify my hem from all that is unworthy of Thy sanctification and glorification, and clothe me with the raiment of detachment in the kingdom of creation, and make my heart the horizon of the lights of Thy knowledge and the dawning-place of the revelations of Thy tender mercy.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá -- AB11239)
Say: Glory be to Thee, O my God! I beseech Thee by Thy Most Great Remembrance to illumine my heart with the light of Thy knowledge and to sanctify me from all that Thy good-pleasure abhorreth.
(Bahá’u’lláh, 1290 [1873] or earlier, to Zahra -- BH06140)
O Lord! Send down from the heaven of Thy gifts that which will purify hearts and souls from whatsoever is repugnant unto Thy good-pleasure.
(Bahá’u’lláh, 1292-05-19 [1875-Jun-23], to friends of God -- BH07114)
Say: O my God, my God! I beseech Thee by the lights of the dawn of Thy Manifestation, and by what was hidden and treasured in the ocean of Thy bounty and bestowal, and by Thy power that hath encompassed all created things, and by Thy sovereignty before which all possibilities have bowed down, and by Thy Most Great Name which hath caused the hearts of the nations to tremble, to assist Thy loved ones to be trustworthy and religious, lest there appear from them that which beseemeth not Thy days and Thy Manifestation. O Lord! Thou beholdest them clinging to Thy cord - disappoint them not of that which Thou hast ordained for Thy chosen ones among Thy sincere ones. O Lord! Adorn them with the ornament of righteousness, then preserve them from the evil of self and passion.
(Bahá’u’lláh, 1307 ? [1889-1890], to Nabil Qabl-i-Baqir -- BH01242)
We beseech God to sanctify your hearts from the mention of aught else but Him, to purify your station from all that His good-pleasure abhorreth, to aid you to remain firm in His love and to arise to serve Him, to bless this wondrous station for you, and to send down upon you that which is best for you.
(Bahá’u’lláh -- BH09471)
I beseech Thee by the lights of Thy countenance and by the mysteries of Thy Cause that Thou purify me with the waters of sanctification, that I may become worthy of Thy remembrance and befitting of Thy praise.
(Bahá’u’lláh, 1297-11-12 [1880-Oct-16], to Siyyid Ibrahim -- BH09449)
I beseech Thee, O Thou Goal of them that know and Beloved of the sincere ones, by Thy Name through which Thou didst abase the standards of the idolaters, to make me pure in my love for Thee, speaking forth Thy praise, and turning toward the lights of Thy countenance.
(Bahá’u’lláh, 1306-03 [1888-Nov], to Ali Khi Alif -- BH09906)
O Muhammad Firuzi in Alif and Ya! Say: O my God, my God! Preserve this servant from the evil of self and desire, and adorn him with the light of righteousness and godliness.
(Bahá’u’lláh, 1307 ? [1889-1890], to Muhammad At Fa And Ya father Of Aqa Buzurg And Aqa Kuchak -- BH09205)
Praise be unto Thee, O my God, for having guided Thy chosen ones unto the ocean of Thy mercy and caused them to hear the cooing of the doves of Thy Cause through Thy grace and favors. I beseech Thee, O my God, by the Name through which the sincere ones hastened unto the seat of Thy throne and the believers unto the dawning-place of the lights of Thy countenance, to send down upon our hearts from the clouds of Thy bounty that which will purify them from all else beside Thee and sanctify them from the mention of aught except Thyself.
(Bahá’u’lláh -- BH04530)
Continue exploring
For thought and discussion
Questions to carry forward
- What is being sought when these prayers ask for a pure heart, and which positive qualities give that aspiration its content?
- How do washing, clothing, light, and writing on the heart illuminate different aspects of inward change?
- How might a tranquil conscience and sincere intention support trustworthy conduct without making a person complacent about the need to grow?
- What does the comparison with Psalm 51 reveal about renewal, mercy, and joy?
- How could the neighboring study of contemplation help a reader examine the difference between an inward impression and a deepening understanding?