Assalam alaikum,
The Prayer, as-Sallat, requires purification of the body with clean water…with which to perform the ablution. Outwardly, when we perform the ablution, we wash our hands, mouth, face, wiping the head and the two feet.
Now, Inwardly, when we wash our hands, we should think…we should take it to mean we wash our heart(s) clean of worldliness, and when we put water in our mouth to clean it, we thereby purify it from mentioning of other than God…Allahu Tabaraka Wa Ta’ala, and when we wash our faces, we should turn Away from all familiar objects and turn towards God, and by wiping our head(s), we must resign our affairs to God, and when we wash our feet, we must not form the intention of taking our stand on anything Except according to the Command of God Almighty.
For further elucidation on this, see Ali Ibn al-Hujwiri's ''Kashf-al-Mahjub''( Revelation Of The Mystery ).
Re: Inward And Outward Purification.
^ Beautiful. there is another way of looking at inward and outward cleanliness.
A glass of drinking water can calm down a human's anger, but only a single drop of tear (for repentance of sin) in loneliness can invite Allah's (swt) mercy & hence millions of blessings are showered upon the repenter.
A bath shower can remove all the dirt from a person's body but dirt of soul is removed by shedding of tears in love of Allah (swt), and fear of HIS punishment. Such a drop is more valuable then all the seas of the universe.
Rain water can cool down the heat of earth, but tears of repentance can cool down the fire of hell, because Jibrail (a.s) once told the Prophet (saw) that the angels can't write down the amount of blessings that 'tears of repentance' brings along with it, because one such tear can extinguish many seas of fire in hell.
Re: Inward And Outward Purification.
