Shloka 3.9.18
सीताया धर्मोपदेशः—शस्त्रसंयोगदोषकथा (Sita’s Counsel on Dharma and the Peril of Weapon-Association)
तस्यैव तपसो विघ्नं कर्तुमिन्द्रश्शचीपतिः।।3.9.18।।खङ्गपाणिरथागच्छदाश्रमं भटरूपधृत्।
tasyaiva tapaso vighnaṃ kartumindraśśacīpatiḥ |
khaṅgapāṇirathāgacchadāśramaṃ bhaṭarūpadhṛt ||
Then Indra, the Lord of Śacī, assuming the guise of a warrior with a sword in his hand, came to that hermitage to place an obstacle in the sage’s penance.
Once Indra, husband of Sachi, came to his hermitage in the guise of an attendant, sword in hand, in order to hinder his penance.
Indra visited the hermitage specifically to create an obstacle (vighnam) to the sage's penance, as the accumulation of ascetic power often threatens the position of celestial beings.
Indra adopted the guise of a warrior (bhaṭa) carrying a sword. This is crucial to Sita's argument, as she uses this story to illustrate to Rama how the mere proximity of a weapon can corrupt a peaceful mind and lead to violence, contrary to the Dharma of a forest-dweller.