राज्यं हि बहु मन्यंते नरा विषयलोलुपाः । मनीषिणस्तु पश्यन्ति तदेव नरकोपमम्
rājyaṃ hi bahu manyaṃte narā viṣayalolupāḥ | manīṣiṇastu paśyanti tadeva narakopamam
Les hommes avides des objets des sens prisent grandement la royauté; mais les sages discernent que cette royauté même est semblable à l’enfer.
Unspecified (a sage/counsellor addressing the king, within Īśvara’s narration context)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: Māhātmya audience
Scene: Split-vision: on one side, men gaze longingly at a throne and pleasures; on the other, a sage sees the same throne casting a shadow shaped like naraka—an image of discernment.
The same power that worldly people admire can become torment if driven by craving; wisdom is to see through its temptations.
The verse sits in the Prabhāsa sacred-region narrative, where visiting and worship cultivate discernment and restraint.
No explicit rite; the implied practice is sense-control and detachment as part of dharmic living.