Cao Dai
From Freepedia
| Đạo Cao Đài |
| Chinese: 高台教 , Gaotaijiao |
| English: Caodaiism, Caodaism |
| Vietnamese: Đạo Cao Đài |
Cao Dai (Cao Đài) is a relatively new, syncretist, monotheistic religion, officially established in Tay Ninh, southern Vietnam, in 1926. Đạo Cao Đài is the religion's shortened name, the full name is Đại Đạo Tam Kỳ Phổ Độ.
The term Cao Dai literally means "high place." Figuratively, it means that highest place where God reigns. It is also the abbreviated name for God, the creator of the universe, whose full title is Cao Đài Tiên Ông Đại Bồ Tát Ma-ha-tát.
Caodaiists credit God as the religion's founder. They believe the teachings come directly from Đức (means venerable) Cao Đài. Cao Dai's first disciples Ngô Văn Chiêu, Cao Quỳnh Cư, Phạm Công Tắc, and Cao Hoài Sang claimed they were contacted by God and given explicit instructions to establish the religion. They claimed to have received direct communications from God, ordering them to combine the major religions of the world, which he has created. These religions are Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Spiritualism.
Adherents engage in ethical practices such as prayer, veneration of ancestors, nonviolence, and vegetarianism with the goal of, minimally, obtaining a favorable rebirth, or, better yet, entering heaven, or, ultimately, escape from the cycle of birth and death. The Saints, or guiding spirits revered in Cao Dai are Buddha, Laozi, Confucius, Sun Yat Sen, Victor Hugo and Jesus. God is symbolized by the Divine Eye, specifically the left eye.
The faith has a hierarchical organization resembling that of the Roman Catholic Church, with a pope, cardinals, bishops, and priests. Ordained women may attain ranks up to cardinal.
Followers of Cao Dai believe that its teachings, symbolism and organization were communicated directly from God, and even the construction of the Tay Ninh Holy See had divine guidance.
Estimates of the number of Cao Dai adherents in Vietnam vary, but most sources give two to three millions. Some estimates are as high as eight million adherents in Vietnam. An additional 30,000 (primarily ethnic Vietnamese) in the United States, Europe, and Australia.
The teachings of Cao Dai are similar to the teachings of I-Kuan Tao. Cao Dai is generally considered to be slightly older and larger though.
