Ashtavakra Gita

The world binds the ignorant, but even seen, it does not bind the wise, for they know its true nature

The claim reframes bondage as a matter of understanding rather than circumstance, since the visible world itself doesn't change between the wise and the ignorant.

The verse specifies that the world remains visible and present to the wise — this is not a claim that liberation involves ceasing to perceive people, places, or events. What differs between the ignorant and the wise is knowledge of what that world actually is: for the ignorant it registers as an independent reality capable of trapping or threatening them, while for the wise it is recognized as an appearance within the very awareness they are. This distinguishes the Gita's notion of bondage from anything environmental — a king surrounded by wealth and a hermit with nothing can be equally bound or equally free, since the condition is a matter of understanding rather than of what is or isn't present. The claim closes chapter 2's central argument: it was never the world that had to change, only the mistaken idea about the relationship between the world and the one perceiving it.

Ashtavakra Gita