Gemara: Whenever the Rabbis said that something is forbidden because of marit ayin (it looks to others as if he is doing something forbidden), it is forbidden to do so even in a room within another room [and no one is present].



Ein Ayah: All of existence, with all the events that transpire, joins together with clear thought to form one unit. The individual and the community act upon and are impacted by each other in their natural lives and their moral lives.

Actions that when they are visible to others can damage the life of morality, purity, and sanctity already have imbedded in them venom that poisons a person’s morality and completeness. This includes actions whose only negative element is that when the public sees them, people see it as a sin, in a manner that we call marit ayin. [Even when the public has actually not seen it,] it still has a negative impact on the person who acted in that manner as if it already was seen and misunderstood by others. Since this negative spirituality is connected to the action itself, it is correct to forbid it even if it is done in a room that is inside another room.