Anthropologists studying man's mode of dress throughout the globe have established an interesting fact: No matter how much or how little attire any given ethnic group sets as its norm, there is one area of the body which is inevitability covered, the genitals. Considering the wide range of variations in dress, in language and customs, in economic and social standards, from one county to the other, we might expect that man's dress code would differ greatly from one ethnic group to the next.  Perhaps one tribe would decide to always cover the left hand, or the right ear. Another tribe might maintain that the knees must always be hidden from view. 

Such is not the case. From tropical rain forest and overgrown jungle to the vast, frozen wastelands of the far north, from Oceania to Oklahoma, from Caledonia to California, the principle is consistent. Without exception, we find that all agree that the area of the human body which propriety demands be covered is one and the same.

Primitive tribes do not train their children in modesty after the fashion of more modern society. Nonetheless, the ultimate “free soul”, as some Western philosophers describe him, does don a minimal breech cloth, at the least, to cover his nakedness.

Psychology postulates that man is ashamed of his nakedness only because parents, teachers, and/or society have trained him to feel this way. Were this correct, we would expect each culture to designate its own specific code about which body parts should be clothed, and which are acceptable for public view. Such is not the case.

Man instinctively knows that he is essentially a distinct, unique individual, with characteristics which are his alone. He has no duplicate on the face of the globe. This inner identity, his ego, endows him with a sense of independence. His heart senses that he has a profound intrinsic worth in his own right. The source of this self-knowledge is the fact that each man and woman on the face of the earth is created in the image of the Creator. There lies within him a spark of the Divine. To experience true satisfaction in life, man must give expression to this spark that his Maker implanted within him. Man instinctively strives to satisfy his material needs for food, drink, sleep, shelter, and so forth. Neither does he overlook his emotional need of social recognition, warmth and affection and self-confidence. These needs are common to all men, and serve the instinct of self-preservation.

In the final estimation, however, no matter how well a person has met his physical and emotional needs, there always remains an inner yearning to realize the unique potential which is his alone. Each individual has a specific role to play in this world, a task assigned to him alone, which distinguishes him from all others on the face of the globe. His satisfaction in life is dependent on how well he succeeds in playing this unique role.

Man is likened to the Sanctuary which stood in Jerusalem. The Temple Mount was surrounded by walls, one inside the other. It had an outer court, an inner court, and, at its very heart, a Holy of Holies. This latter section was the inner heart of the Sanctuary and the most sacred. Man's innermost being, that which is unique unto him and distinguishes him from all other human beings, is likened to the Holy of Holies, the innermost area of the Temple. Man feels a need to give expression in physical terms to this innermost being of his spirit. He designates one portion of his body to remain untrampled, as it were, by the heel of the masses. Nor is it to be observed by the public eye. 

Just the opposite is true of man in modern, Western society. Typically, people are “looking for themselves.” They are no longer in touch with their inner selves. Consequently, they feel pressed to set off on a search for their identity. Backpackers, young and not-so-young, tread the globe, in an effort to “find themselves.” Having lost their identity, these young seekers no longer feel shame in uncovering themselves in public. They have lost touch with the inner sanctum of their souls, the Divine spark within them. Thus they feel no need to protect the inner sanctum of their physical presence. All is open, a no-man's land, unidentified and unclaimed. 

Like their nebulous, undefined souls, their physical being is open territory for one and all to trample upon at will. Individuals reveal the depths of their souls to perfect strangers, with no reservation. Modern Man bares his heart to one and all. Nothing is held in reserve, nothing remains private. One who has no distinctive personality, uniquely his own, has nothing to guard or keep for himself.