author
Paul Ambroise Bigandet
1813–1894
A French missionary and bishop who spent decades in Burma, he became known not only for church work but also for writing one of the best-known early English accounts of Burmese Buddhism. His life joined travel, scholarship, and a long commitment to communities far from his native France.
2 Audiobooks
The Life or Legend of Gaudama, the Buddha of the Burmese (Volume I)
by Paul Ambroise Bigandet
The Life or Legend of Gaudama, the Buddha of the Burmese (Volume II)
by Paul Ambroise Bigandet
About the author
Born in Besançon, France, in 1813, Paul Ambroise Bigandet studied for the priesthood and joined the Paris Foreign Missions Society. After being sent first to Malacca, he moved to Burma, where he spent most of his working life.
Bigandet later served as Bishop of Lower Burma and became an important Catholic figure in the region during the nineteenth century. He is especially remembered today for The Life or Legend of Gaudama, the Buddha of the Burmese, a work that introduced many English-language readers to Burmese Buddhist traditions and showed his close interest in the culture around him.
He died in Rangoon in 1894 after many years of missionary and pastoral work. His legacy stands at the meeting point of religion, history, and cross-cultural writing.