Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 99
यथा पुण्यं तथा पापं कृतं कर्म शुभाशुभम् । तत्सर्वं वर्द्धते नूनं धर्मारण्ये नृपोत्तम
yathā puṇyaṃ tathā pāpaṃ kṛtaṃ karma śubhāśubham | tatsarvaṃ varddhate nūnaṃ dharmāraṇye nṛpottama
جیسے پُنّیہ، ویسے ہی پاپ—جو بھی عمل کیا جائے، نیک ہو یا بد—وہ سب دھرم آरणیہ میں یقیناً بڑھتا ہے، اے بہترین بادشاہ۔
Unspecified (addressing a king: nṛpottama)
Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya
Type: kshetra
Listener: nṛpottama (best of kings)
Scene: A king is instructed by a sage in a sacred forest; the land itself is shown as luminous—half depicting auspicious acts blossoming into light, half warning that dark acts thicken into shadow—symbolizing karma growth in Dharmāraṇya.
FAQs
A sacred place amplifies karmic results; therefore one must act carefully and virtuously in a tīrtha-region.
Dharmāraṇya itself is explicitly glorified as a place where karma—good or bad—intensifies.
Implicit prescription: engage in śubha-karma (virtuous acts) and avoid aśubha-karma, since results multiply in Dharmāraṇya.