Cao Dai, Faith of Unity
Cao Dai
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| Fast Facts: Cao Dai | |
|---|---|
| Adherents | 4-6 million |
| Date Founded | 1926 |
| Place Founded | Vietnam |
| Founder(s) | Ngo Van Chieu |
| Beliefs | God represented by Divine Eye. Salvation by "cultivating self and finding God in self." Reincarnation. |
| Practices | Hierarchy similar to Roman Catholicism. Daily prayer. Meditation. Communication with spirit world (now outlawed in Vietnam). |
| Texts | Caodai canon |
Cao Dai (a.k.a. Dao Cao Dai or Caodaism) is a syncretist Vietnamese religious movement with a nationalist political character. Cao Dai draws upon ethical duties and virtues from Confucianism, occult rituals from Taoism, theories of karma and rebirth from Buddhism, and a hierarchical organization from Roman Catholicism. Its saints includes the Buddha, Confucius, Jesus Christ, Muhammad, Pericles, Julius Caesar, Joan of Arc, Victor Hugo, and Sun Yat-sen.
Table of Contents
Sources
- “Cao Dai.” Encyclopaedia Britannica Online.
- “Cao Dai.”
- CaoDai.org. Official website. Lots of information on Cao Dai, including FAQ, prayers, spiritual messages, news, etc.
- “How Does One Practice Cao Dai.” CaoDai.org.
Further Reading
- Centre for Studies in Caodaism.
- Ron Gluckman/Tay Ninh. “Spirit in the Sky.” . Impressions of Cao Dai by an American reporter on Asia.
- Hum Dac Bui, Cao Dai, Faith of Unity (Emerald Wave, 2000).
- V. L. Oliver, Caodai Spiritism: A Study of Religion in Vietnamese Society (Brill Academic, 1997).
- Jayne S. Werner, Peasant Politics and Religious Sectarianism: Peasant and Priest in the Cao Dai in Viet Nam . "Founded as a small elite cult in Saigon in 1925, the Cao Dai became Vietnam's first nationalist organization, and by 1930 had 500,000 members in a regional population of four million. The author combines a sociological analysis of the fundamental social conditions of the genesis and development of the movement and its cultural dimensions." (Amazon)
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Article Info
| Title | Cao Dai |
|---|---|
| Published | March 17, 2015 |
| Last Updated | February 13, 2021 |
| URL | religionfacts.com/ |
| Short URL | rlft.co/1627 |
| MLA Citation | “Cao Dai.” ReligionFacts.com. 13 Feb. 2021. Web. Accessed 16 Jan. 2022. <religionfacts.com/cao-dai> |