Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam: The Cao Dai Temple

I never heard of Caodaism before the day that we stopped by this place on our way to Cu Ci Tunnels. Oh, I knew we were stopping by a temple somewhere, but I thought it was just one of those regular temples, not an entire hub of an entirely different way of life. So let us check out the Cao Dai Temple… and what it means, shall we?

When we arrived at our hostel in Ho Chi Minh, we immediately arranged a day tour to Cu Ci Tunnels with the guy at the desk. He booked the tour for us and just told us to be ready at 8:30 the next morning as we will be picked up by our tour operator.

Sure enough, at 8:30, our tour guide came by, and we made that short walk to a bus parking area, where other tourists going on a tour are waiting. It was already 9am when our tour party was assembled and we hit the road.

At 11am, our bus stopped somewhere for a restroom break and, as our tour guide invited, to check out some arts and crafts made by handicapped people.

The large tarpaulin on the wall of the workshop said “Handicapped Handicrafts” by Vietnam Association for Invalids and Disabilities Enterprises (Since 1976). Apparently, people with disabilities are in this workshop, working with ceramics and ceramic art, and mixing it with eggshells, coming up with all sorts of wares from wall decors to coasters and even kitchen dishes and utensils.

The workers were all quietly going about their work as we walked around, watching them work. It was fascinating, to say the least, and they made it look so easy. Well, it’s highly likely that they have mastered this skills already, and when we saw the end results at the adjoining store later on, our theory was proven true.

I’m guessing it takes a lot of focus and concentration, not to mention patience, to be doing this kind of thing. All those things I am in short supply often, which is probably why anything artsy is way out of my radar.

I am left only to appreciate them. For now, that is more than enough.

So… my honest opinion. (And this is just an opinion, let me just put that out there.)

I think I have already developed an ease in identifying a tourist trap when I see one. I’ve fallen prey to these traps more than once before, and I can’t say I am fully immune to them by now, but in my defense, I think it is already a good thing to be able to identify whether I’m in one or not, and so I can make a more informed decision whether I’d let it fully entrap me (and my money) or not.

This one is definitely one of those tourist traps. But in all fairness to them, I think the underlying cause or advocacy behind it is actually commendable. Tourists buy some wares or crafts, part of the proceeds will go to the association and, by default (I hope) its members.

The crafts and wares were of good quality, too. I just don’t think I’d be willing to part with some of my money, though because boy, they aren’t cheap at all. I remember gasping when I saw the price of a tiny coaster made with eggshells and ceramics. I can’t remember the exact price, but I do remember thinking it was utterly ludicrous.

To be honest, I don’t think there was anyone in our party that purchased anything from the store. But that’s because they were mostly students, in my opinion.

After stepping out of the store and going back to our bus, we then made our way to the first stop of our day tour, which is the Cao Dai Temple, the real star of this blog post.

The Cao Dai Great Temple

Including stopovers (for the Handicapped Handicrafts and lunch), it took more than 3 hours until we arrived at the Cao Dai Temple. When we got there, it was already 12:45 noontime.

So the sun was high, heat was cranked up way higher, and it was almost painful to just breathe in. Haha!

But that didn’t stop us from getting out of our van and walking towards the Temple.

The entire compound of Cao Dai Temple is located at the village of Hong Loa in the province of Tay Ninh, which is roughly 100 kilometers away from Ho Chi Minh. The place’s highlight or main point of interest is the Thanh That Cao Dai, or the Cao Dai Great Temple.

When the Japanese occupied Indochina, the Cao Dai Army was formed and construction began on the temple, until its completion in 1955. Since then, it has become the seat of their Holy See.

Look at that. Isn’t it just grand-looking??

The area immediately surrounding the Great Temple is closed off to traffic – both vehicular and human – since the midday prayer rites are about to be held. I’m thinking that even if the signs aren’t there, only a few vehicles would be passing around it. There is a designated parking area a few meters away, by the way, and we just approached the Temple on foot.

Wait, so what is CaoDaism, or the Cao Dai religion?

Founded in 1926, Caodaism is a monotheistic religion established in the south of Vietnam, in this very city. What makes it unique as a religion is how it is able to blend various aspects of other religions, particularly Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, and even bits of Catholicism, into a cohesive whole, resulting to the religion (and a whole way of life) now known as Caodaism.

Mainly, what it derives from Catholicism is the hierarchical structure and organization. Just as Catholics have the Pope as their supreme organizational leader, Caodaism also has its Holy See, who resides here at this Temple. This is like their version of the Vatican, and Tay Ninh is their Rome.

“Cao Dai” is Taoist for “supreme god”, and that is what they call their supreme being. What’s interesting is that they are accepting of the fact that the god they are worshipping is the VERY SAME GOD worshipped in all the other major religions of the world. It’s just the name that’s different. But, for them, Cao Dai does not have any particular gender or personality, and they avoid attributing any earthly characteristics to it either.

Oh, and they also have saints, whom they honor alongside their ancestors. What piqued my interest was that their pantheon of saints included Julius Caesar and Victor Hugo.

Time to go in.

So, here’s the thing: you are not allowed to enter wearing your shoes.  And this restriction begins even on the walkway. The thing is, it was so darn hot that day, the ground was hot enough to scorch your bare flesh. This explains this thin strip of cloth that will serve as a footpath into the temple.

Preparations for the 1pm prayers were underway, so we were immediately directed to go up the stairs to a balcony seemingly specifically prepared for viewers and spectators. From there, you get a full view of the cathedral-like interior of the Temple.

It was soooo colorful! Red, white, blue and yellow colors stood out, which reminded me of the Philippine flag, haha!

And I just loved how dragons and other mythical creatures were wrapped around the giant posts. So pretty.

The ceremony began with the entrance of what I presume were the officials of the religion, wearing garb of different colors from the others. It was a solemn ceremony, with the entire place turning into hushed silence except for some chanting by the congregation, and some sounds from strings accompanying the prayers.

And, yes, it’s all in a language I cannot understand.

By the way, I did mention about their saints, right? Yes, even the leader of the Chinese Revolution, Sun Yat-sen, is included in their pantheon of saints.

And in succeeding readings, I think it also includes Jeanne d’Arc (Joan of Arc) and Pericles.

We weren’t allowed past the threshold, by the way. The stairs leading up to the balcony were outside the threshold of the Temple, and that is the only point where spectators are allowed. I’m not sure if that is still the case if there is no prayer/service going on.

BY the way, even at the balcony, we do not have the whole place to ourselves. Visitors are allowed to stay only on the sides, since the middle area is where their “choir” or musical group takes their spot.

They had no issues with us taking pictures, though. We just have to observe silence while doing so. And not cross into the threshold or go past the main doors.

No complaints from me. I’d be personally uncomfortable if I stepped in, since it’d feel too much like intruding on other people’s private time which, in this particular case, actually is.

That large eye above their altar gave me flashbacks of Dan Brown’s Robert Langdon novels. XDDD

We didn’t finish the ceremony, since we had a feeling it’ll probably go on for an hour or so. So we stepped out, took a walk around the perimeter of the temple, until we reached the gardens and a quadrangle on the other side.

Even from here, I thought it presented an awesome sight.

I am pretty sure every detail in their architecture has a meaning. Like, they wouldn’t put lions and dragons in there if they are not sacred to them, right?

There were fenced in forested areas all around, and look who we found lurking on the sides!

This monkey is just one of the dozens and dozens we spotted. Some stayed far from the fences, staring at us blankly while others just don’t seem to care that there are visitors. They must’ve been used to it.

It would have been really interesting if this was included in our subject before about religions of the world. Unfortunately, the educators must have thought it was too small of a religion to be called a major religion, much less take up space in our curriculum.

Still, from what little we saw in our almost an hour-long visit to this Temple, it is definitely an interesting study.

Next blog will be about the Cu Ci Tunnels. See you then!