Jean-Antoine Dubois

Jean-Antoine Dubois , baptized with Saint-Remèze (Ardeche) the January 10th 1766 and died with Paris the February 17th 1848, is a missionary French in India

Fleeing the French revolution, the Dubois abbot goes to India to Pondichéry in 1792 to preach the Christianisme there. Although remained 32 years, there turn over in Europe convinced that the conversion of the Hindu is a task impossible to conclude. This thesis which it off exposes in its Letters one the State Christianity in India (London, 1823), is vigorously criticized in England.

Writings of or allotted to Dubois

One generally thinks that it composes then a work bought for twenty thousand francs by the English Compagnie of the Eastern Indies, Gouvernement of Madras, translated and published in London in 1816 under the title of Description off the Character, Manners and Customs off the People off India, and off to their Institutions, religious and civil . This work is regarded as the first work of research indianist. Dubois publishes an edition increased in French under the title Mœurs, institutions and ceremonies of the people of India (1825, Paris), which is regarded as best and the most complete of work of the time on the life in India.

However, as explained by Sylvia Murr, “ Manners and Coutumes of the Indians , - only text who has right for this reason - were compiled in 1776 - 1777 per Nicolas-Jacques Desvaulx, officer of artillery creole of Pondichéry and wire of one of the richest merchants of the French Compagnie of the Eastern Indies. He is only one shortened version, adapted to the interests of the moment, of a sum of the indianism Jesuit written in the middle of the 18th century by Gaston-Laurent Cœurdoux, s.j., missionary in India between 1734 and 1779. This sum was promised with a not very ordinary destiny, because, so already Anquetil-Duperron had made of it publish a whole chapter the shortly after the French revolution, it is it also that the Dubois Abbot sold in 1808 with the English Compagnie of the Eastern Indies in Madras as being his own work…”

It publishes also a Exposé some of the principal articles of the theology of Brahmes (Paris, 1825), the Pantcha-tantra or the five tricks, fables of Brahme Vichnou-Sarma (Paris, 1826). It is one of the collaborators of the universal Bulletin of sciences of the baron de Férussac. It finishes its life like superior of Foreign missions.

The Dubois abbot is at the origin of the Théorie of the Aryan invasion.

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