In some cases, vibhīṣikā apparently has a meaning close to “scarecrow.” My acquaintance with the word comes from Jātakamālā, verse 29.35, where it does not have exactly this meaning (bālavibhīṣikā, “a bogey man for children” in J. Meiland’s translation ; “a child’s bugbear” in Khoroche’s translation). Apte’s Enlarged Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary, however, has the following to say about this word: “1. Terror. 2. A means of terrifying, a scare (a scare-crow).”

Very best,