The Gemara (Shabbat
114a) teaches that one of the qualities of a Talmid Hacham (Torah scholar) is
that if he notices that one of his garments is inside-out, he immediately turns
it around so the stitches will not be visible.
It seems that long ago, the interior of garments looked very much like
the exterior, except that the stitching was visible on the inside, and so it
would be common to mistakenly wear a garment inside-out. A Torah scholar is obligated to ensure to
wear his garments the right way, and not inside-out.
The Tur writes that
with respect to this Halacha, all observant Jews must consider themselves
"Torah scholars." All those who observe
the Torah effectively function as the "ambassadors" of Torah, since people who
see us and watch how we conduct ourselves naturally interpret our behavior as
reflective of the Torah's values.
Therefore, all observant Jews must dress respectably, and this includes
ensuring that clothing is not worn inside-out.
However, if the
concern was only about appearance, then this Halacha would not apply to undergarments,
which are not seen. We would assume that
one may wear an undershirt, for example, inside-out, since it is not
visible. In truth, though, several
sources teach that this Halacha is based also on Kabbalistic concepts, and it
therefore applies to all garments. Even
if, for example, nobody would notice if one's socks are worn inside-out, or if
his Sisit are worn inside-out, nevertheless, they must not be worn this way. Beyond the need to appear presentable,
clothes must be worn the right way because of Kabbalistic reasons, and so this
applies to all garments.
If, however, a garment
is made from the outset to be reversible, and worn both ways, then one may wear
it either way.
