Disclaimer: This was written a year ago.
Let me begin by explaining the concept of shobha (pronounced shoub-ha). This idea-word is very much indebted to Islamic thought on gender relations. As such, there is no real equivalent in the English language. But for the purposes of this entry, I'll define it as the state of shame that occurs when one puts oneself in a seemingly compromising situation. Emphasis on 'seemingly.' As is typical of shame, shobha is more concerned with how a situation *appears* to the outside observer, rather than with the actual facts of the situation known to those who are experiencing it. Interestingly, the word is derived from the root sha-ba-ha, which means to resemble, to appear to be, etc.
Here's an example. A man and a woman are
sitting together at a table in their workplace, having a conversation. They are
not married to each other, nor are they related in any way. So when their
colleagues see them sitting together, they automatically assume that something
illicit is transpiring. Illicit activities between unmarried men and women in
the non-secular Muslim mind include spending unnecessary time together,
flirting, joking around, holding hands, dating, and everything else that could
possibly happen between members of the opposite sex. The two are then harshly
judged by all those who know them and
see them together (If they are together in a place in which nobody knows them,
there is no shobha. Onlookers will assume that they are married and hence not doing anything wrong). The
actual reality of the situation doesn't matter much. The two could merely be
having a friendly conversation, collaborating on a work project... one could be
reprimanding the other for bad behavior, or even teaching him or her the Quran.
The possibilities are endless, but all that concerns the onlookers is the fact
that the two are sitting together without being married or related.
