  The variational method allows one to study the mixing of interpolators with
different chiral transformation properties in the nonperturbatively determined
physical state. It is then possible to define and calculate in a
gauge-invariant manner the chiral as well as the partial wave content of the
quark-antiquark component of a meson in the infrared, where mass is generated.
Using a unitary transformation from the chiral basis to the $^{2S+1}L_J$ basis
one may extract the partial wave content of a meson. We present results for the
$\rho$- and $\rho'$-mesons using a simulation with $N_f=2$ dynamical quarks,
all for lattice spacings close to 0.15 fm. Our results indicate a strong chiral
symmetry breaking in the $\rho$ state and its simple $^3S_1$-wave composition
in the infrared. For the $\rho'$-meson we find a small chiral symmetry breaking
in the infrared as well as a leading contribution of the $^3D_1$ partial wave,
which is contradictory to the quark model.
