The famous courtesan of Vaishali. The Buddha, passing through the city on his last journey, declined a civic reception offered by the city elders in favor of her dinner invitation.

Ambapali ( about 500 BC), also called Amrapali, was a royal courtesan (or nagarvadhu) of the republic state of Vaishali, ancient India. She finds mention in the old Pali texts and Buddhist traditions. Etymologically, Ambapali or Amrapali is derived from two Sanskrit words, “amra” meaning mango and “pali”, which means leaves – thus, the literally meaning of her name is “(a child) of the mango grove”.