Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.73.14
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
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mṛga-tṛṣṇi-rūpitam
—
appearing as a mirage
Rūpita — given a form. The kingdom is not nothing; it is the wrong shape of something — māyā's form imposed on the kṣetra that is really the Lord's.
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rujām
—
of diseases
Genitive plural of ruj — disease. Modifies bhuvā ('the birthplace'). The body is named not as the seat of pleasures but as the soil from which rujā grow — the Bhāgavata diagnosis of dehātma-buddhi.
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upāsitavyam
—
to be served / worshiped
Same root (√upās) used elsewhere for upāsanā of Bhagavān. The verse mocks the inversion: the body that should be the servant of Bhagavān has been worshiped as the master of kings.
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karṇa-rocanam
—
enticement for the ears
Rocana — that which makes pleasant. The promise of svarga-phala is named as ear-candy only. A sharp Bhāgavata reading of karma-kāṇḍa's reward-talk.
One must work very hard to maintain a kingdom or political sovereignty. And yet the body, which works so hard to maintain one’s political power, is itself doomed. At every moment the mortal body moves toward death, and all along the way the body is subject to many painful diseases. The whole affair of mundane power is thus a waste of time for the pure soul, who needs to revive his dormant Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The Vedic scriptures and other religious scriptures contain many promises of prosperity and heavenly enjoyment in the next life for one who acts piously in this life. Such promises are pleasing to the ears, but they are nothing more than that. Material enjoyment, whether in heaven or in hell, is a type of illusion for the pure soul. By the personal association of Lord Kṛṣṇa, the fortunate kings have now realized the higher spiritual reality beyond the phantasmagoria of the material creation.
Therefore (atha) we do not desire the kingdom made beautiful by men under the spell of illusions. The accusative case is poetic license. They are kingdoms served by bodies which are residences of sickness, and very temporary. Such kingdoms only give sorrow. Moreover it is then necessary to perform sacrifices like asvamedha using huge amounts of wealth obtained in the kingdom. We have no desire for svarga loka (kriyaphalam). Such results are pleasurable only to the ears, for having gone there one finds no happiness because of continued competition there.
Mṛga-tṛṣṇi means mṛga-tṛṣṇā. Vopadeva’s version has mṛga-tṛḍ. We should not desire a kingdom since its enjoyment is like a mirage (useless), and since we enjoy it with a body afflicted by sickness. Master (vibho)! In attaining you, how can this be attractive?
A man who has just been pulled out of one mirage does not run toward the next mirage labeled 'svarga'. The kings refuse the second pond also. The body is a leaking water-pot; the heavens are a noisier mirage with sweeter labels. Both fail the same test: anityā.
In Canto 4.8–9, the boy Dhruva sought a position higher than his father's. After tapas, Viṣṇu offered him the polestar — and Dhruva, when finally seeing Bhagavān face to face, regretted that he had asked for broken glass while the jeweler was offering rubies.
The kings of Magadha's prison have made the inverse journey: kingdom first, jail next, and now, before re-entering thrones, they renounce in advance the temptation Dhruva almost took.
My note
Source: vedabase.io