The life or legend of Gaudama, the Buddha of the Burmese. With annotations. The ways to Neibban, and notice on the Phongyies or Burmese monks

This work was authored by Bishop Paul Ambroise Bigandet, a French missionary who spent decades in Burma during the mid-19th century. Originally published in several parts during the 1850s, the text was intended to provide Western audiences with a comprehensive account of Buddhist theology and practice as observed through the lens of local Burmese tradition. The 1911 edition issued by Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner is part of the long-running Trübner's Oriental Series, which sought to compile scholarly translations and studies of Eastern religious and philosophical texts for an academic readership in Europe.

Bigandet’s approach was noted for its ethnographic depth, as he drew heavily from Burmese manuscripts to detail the life of Siddhartha Gautama and the institutional structure of the monastic sangha, or Phongyies. While framed by a mid-Victorian missionary perspective that often aimed to contrast Buddhist thought with Christian doctrine, the book gained lasting recognition for its meticulous documentation of Burmese customs and Buddhist scripture. It remains a significant historical bridge, reflecting the late 19th-century intellectual push to categorize and understand the belief systems of the British colonial empire.