Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 56
यथा वार्धुषिको वृद्धि दिनभेदे प्रतीक्षते । धर्मेण पिहित॑ पापं धर्ममेवाभिवर्धयेत्
yathā vārdhuṣiko vṛddhiṁ dinabhede pratīkṣate | dharmeṇa pihitaṁ pāpaṁ dharmam evābhivardhayet ||
毗湿摩说：“如放债者日日等待利息增长，罪亦随时日而滋长。但若以达摩覆护而加以节制——以正行检束——则反而使达摩更为增长。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sin tends to compound if left unchecked, like interest accruing day by day; but when wrongdoing is restrained and overruled by dharma—through righteous choices and corrective conduct—it contributes to the strengthening of dharma (moral character and merit).
In Bhishma’s instruction on dharma (Anushasana Parva), he uses a practical analogy of a moneylender waiting for interest to grow to explain how moral tendencies can increase over time, and how deliberate adherence to dharma can suppress and transform the momentum of sin into the growth of righteousness.