What is indecency?
As per Merriam-Webster dictionary, Indecent means- not decent, grossly improper or offensive, unseemly, inappropriate.
As per Wikipedia-
In the United States, indecent exposure refers to conduct undertaken in a non-private or (in some jurisdictions) publicly viewable location, which is deemed indecent in nature, such as nudity, masturbation, or sexual intercourse. Such activity is often illegal. The legal definition in a given location may not specify all activities that would be covered.
Indecent exposure may also be referred to as "sexual misconduct" or "public lewdness."
In Illinois, public indecency, as defined by 720 ILCS 5/11-30, is a crime committed by a person 17 years or older who performs an act of sexual penetration or sexual conduct or engages in lewd exposure of the body with the intent to arouse or satisfy sexual desire in a public place.
In India, "indecency" is a term often used in conjunction with "obscenity" and generally refers to behavior or content that violates societal standards of decency and morality, though not necessarily to the extreme degree of obscenity, which involves more explicit, lewd, and morally corrupting conduct.
Section 294 of BNS 2023: Formerly Indian Penal Code (IPC) Section 292 prohibits the sale, advertisement, or public display of obscene content, including digital media. Defines obscenity as sexually suggestive material meant to provoke sexual thoughts or likely to harm people's morals or behavior.
Let us look at nature now.
Do plants, animals, birds, etc. wear clothes or cover their sexual parts? Some flowers have their sex organs exposed.
Some Jains do not wear clothes. There are naked Jain statues/murtis.
Naga sadhus do not wear clothes.
Some people prefer to stay naked in the confines of their closed homes.
Some tribes either do not wear clothes or cover some parts of their bodies with leaves, bark, fur, etc.
Some may choose to live naked or indecent due to the weather.
Some poor people do not have enough clothes to properly cover them.
Some wear torn and/or revealing clothes in the name of fashion just to get money, attractive, or likes and subscribers on social media outlets.
There are instances of accidental indecency e.g. tight clothes coming apart.
Some may be forced into indecency e.g. slaves, children, less powerful people.
In the movie "Fire" the husband forced his wife to sleep naked near him to help him in his spiritual sadhana.
In summary, the reasons for naked living or indecency are many and varied:
- Traditions and culture
- Convenience, personal preference
- Forced or coercion
- Spiritual practices, to control vasanas
- Poverty
- Fashion
- To remain in the limelight
- For money
- Weather conditions
As per Digamber Jainism, not wearing clothers takes a lot of courage and Tap. It shows control over vasanas, sanyam. However, what about others who suddenly come across these practitioners? Can they unsee what they have seen?
Repercussions for indecency in private and public are different. If we go by the definition of indecency then private indecency does not even exist.