The purgative way is the stage of conversion and ascetic struggle, in which the soul turns from sin, practises the virtues and disciplines the senses and passions. It corresponds to the outer dwellings of Teresa’s castle and to the moral foundation that every contemplative tradition places first.
Purgation
The purgative way: the first stage of the mystical path, purification from sin, vice and attachment.
Also: purgative way