Wife of Mahosadha. She was the Tochter von a Kaufmann who had fallen on evil days. Mahosadha, while seeking for a wife, met her as she was taking a meal to her Vater und entered into conversation mit her. He asked her various questions und she answered in riddles. Mahosadha went to her Vater's house und plied seintrade as a tailor, taking the opportunity of observing the girl's behaviour. He tested her temper und her character in various ways, und being satisfied that she was altogether desirable, he married her mit the approval of Queen Udumbarā. She wurde popular mit everybody und was of great assistance to her Ehemann in frustrating the attempts of seinenemies to work ihm harm (J.vi.364-72, 392; the story appears auch in Mtu.ii.83).
In the present age Amarā was the schön Bimbādevī (J.vi.478).
In the Milinda (pp.205ff ) der König mentions the story of Amarādevī having been left behind in the village while her Ehemann was away on a journey, und of her resisting a temptation to be unfaithful to him. "If that be true, how," asks der König, "could you justify der Buddha's statement (*) that all women will go wrong, failing others, even mit a cripple?" Nāgasena explains this by saying that Amarā did not sin because she had neither real secrecy nor opportunity nor the right-wooer!
(*) Incidentally, these words do not really belong to der Buddha. They appear in the Kunāla Jātaka (J.v.435), which is a specimen of Indian folklore und not of Buddhist belief.