Outside of the initial installation (brew install or apt-get install or whatever you use), you really don't have to deal with the JVM ecosystem or classpaths unless you interop with Java stuff (in which case, you'd be using JVM anyway).
Leiningen (and boot) isolate you from all of that. I've been using Clojure since 09 and I don't remember the last time I even had to think about a classpath. I also use vim (and more recently, spacemacs) and not an IDE. Its not an issue in Clojure.
Although, I agree with you on the JVM in general and can see how its a reasonably assumption, even if not actually true.
Leiningen (and boot) isolate you from all of that. I've been using Clojure since 09 and I don't remember the last time I even had to think about a classpath. I also use vim (and more recently, spacemacs) and not an IDE. Its not an issue in Clojure.
Although, I agree with you on the JVM in general and can see how its a reasonably assumption, even if not actually true.