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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.67.20

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 67: Story of Kabandha. A ṛṣi’s curse and Indra’s thunderbolt produced his deformed body, he asks for cremation to restore his discernment and name a helpful ally

In the sequence: Rāma explains that Rāvaṇa carried Sītā away but that they do not know his appearance, home, or strength → he offers to gather dry wood and perform the cremation, asking Kabandha for whatever information he has

3.67.20

nāmamātraṃ tu jānāmi na rūpaṃ tasya rakṣasaḥ
nivāsaṃ vā prabhāvaṃ vā vayaṃ tasya na vidmahe

“I know only the name of that rākṣasa, not his form; and neither his dwelling nor his power do we know.

Words: nāmamātraṃ — the mere name; tu — but; jānāmi — I know; na — not; rūpaṃ — the form; tasya — his; rakṣasaḥ — of the rākṣasa; nivāsaṃ — dwelling, abode; vā — or; prabhāvaṃ — power, might; vā — or; vayaṃ — we; tasya — his; na — not; vidmahe — we know

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.