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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 2.108.16

Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, sarga 108: The ṛṣis leave Citrakūṭa. Rākṣasas assault the tapasvins and disrupt their rites, the community departs for another hermitage despite Rāma’s appeal to remain

In the sequence: they appear in frightening forms, assault and defile the tapasvins, lurk around the hermitages, extinguish fires, break pots, and disrupt offerings

2.108.16

teṣu teṣv āśramasthāneṣv abuddham avalīya ca
ramante tāpasāṃs tatra nāśayanto 'lpacetasaḥ

Lurking unnoticed in this or that hermitage-spot, those dull-witted ones take delight there in destroying the ascetics.

Words: teṣu teṣv — in this and that; āśramasthāneṣv — in the hermitage places; abuddham — unnoticed, imperceptibly; avalīya ca — and having hidden, lurking; ramante — they take delight; tāpasāṃs — the ascetics; tatra — there; nāśayanto — destroying; 'lpacetasaḥ — the dull-witted

Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki. Sanskrit: The Vālmīki-Rāmāyaṇa: Critical Edition, Oriental Institute, Baroda, 1960–1975 (gen. eds. G. H. Bhatt, U. P. Shah); IAST from GRETIL (Göttingen). Translation and word glosses: Claude Opus 4.6–4.7; summaries and sequences: ChatGPT Astra (machine-made). Numbering follows the Critical Edition, not the vulgate (e.g. Gita Press, valmikiramayan.net), so sarga and verse numbers can differ from those editions.