Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 88
वर्द्धते धर्मराशिश्च शुक्लपक्षे यथा शशी । यथा रत्नानि वर्द्धंते समुद्रे विविधान्यपि
varddhate dharmarāśiśca śuklapakṣe yathā śaśī | yathā ratnāni varddhaṃte samudre vividhānyapi
Le trésor du dharma s’accroît, comme la lune grandit durant la quinzaine claire ; et de même, dans l’océan, se multiplient les gemmes de toutes sortes.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced for Brāhma Khaṇḍa Setu-māhātmya style narration)
Tirtha: Setutīrtha (Setu)
Type: kshetra
Listener: dvijāḥ (twice-born) implied as addressed audience in the surrounding verses
Scene: A serene seashore at Setu: pilgrims facing the ocean at dawn; above them the waxing moon; beneath the waves, glints of many jewels—visual metaphor for dharma increasing unseen yet real.
FAQs
Merit (dharma-puṇya) is depicted as something that can steadily grow through sacred practice, like natural increase seen in the cosmos.
Setu/Rāmasetu, implicitly continuing the praise of Setu-snāna.
No new rite is added here; it poetically explains the growth of dharma attributed to Setu-snāna.