Clarity Reference / Karma, Action, and Consequence / Ignorance and Bondage
Ignorance and Bondage:
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Bondage arises from ignorance, not from karma itself.
Ignorance refers to the misunderstanding of identity — taking the body–mind to be the Self. When this misunderstanding operates, action is taken personally, and consequences appear as binding. Karma seems to attach to an individual subject.
Karma does not bind on its own. Action and consequence function impersonally, according to conditions. Bondage appears only when consequences are interpreted through the assumption of a doer who owns them.
Confusion arises when bondage is attributed to action or fate rather than to ignorance. This shifts attention away from the actual source of the problem and turns karma into an external force.
Understanding removes ignorance. When the mistaken view of identity is resolved, bondage ends, even though action and consequence continue at the level of experience.