VietNamNet Bridge - The Holy See Temple in Hoa Thanh Town, Tay Ninh Province of the religion Caodaista is probably one of the most unique religious architecture in the world.

One of the contributions of Vietnam to the world has been the religion Caodaista, religion that takes concepts from Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, etc. This religion was born in Tay Ninh province in 1926. In this same place stands the Holy See caodista where the most representative building of all is the Temple Cao Dai Tay Ninh province, also called the Temple divine.

The founder of the Cao Dai religion was Ngo Van Chien, a Vietnamese official who worked for the French administration. The literal translation of Cao Dai is a top place.

This religion has distributed 5 million adherents by Vietnam, Australia, Europe and United States. Its symbol is an eye within a triangle, the so-called third eye or the eye that everything he sees and the triangle is triangle of justice.

The three Saints of this religion are the founder of the republic of China Sun Yat-Sen, the poet Victor Hugo and Vietnamese Professor Nguyen Binh Khiem, representing the Alliance between the earthly and the divine. The figures that we see in a box at the entrance of the temple.

The Temple of Tay Ninh, called Toa Thanh or Divine Temple, is the largest of all the churches Caodistas. Begun in 1927 and opened in 1955 after many years of construction due to delays caused by financial and political problems. The Cao Dai Temple is a curious and unique architecture building, mixture of Asian and European architectures, where what most noteworthy of its exterior are its vivid colors and shapes of roofs.

The Holy See of Cao Dai, which can be considered as the headquarters Vatican in Christianity, occupies an area of 100 hectares. The whole complex is surrounded by a fence that protects the complex, with 12 gates. The largest of all doors is normally closed and only opens to make way for leaders and public personalities.

The dimensions of the Cao Dai Temple are 140 meters long, 40 meters wide and 36 meters high.

The architecture of the Cao Dai churches reflects the precepts of this syncretic religion, for example, the two Belfries are unique to Christianity. At the top of the main façade we find the statue of Maitreya Buddha in the Lotus position. Shingles in red color and the pointy roofs are typical of Chinese architecture and Hinduism.

In the Holy See Caodaista the spotlight is the divine Temple, but there is also the tomb of Ho Phap, the Temple of the Holy Mother, the fabric House, the Office of the Pope and the Office of the Lady of the cardinal.

The interior of the Cao Dai Temple is adorned by 18 columns painted in pink with sculptures of dragons and snakes. The columns divide the central part of the Temple in  nine regions, representing nine regions that make up the Mekong Delta and also nine stages caodaistas until you reach the sky.

The ceilings painted in blue represent the sky and the stars, specifically 3,072 stars. Around the temple are many caodaista representations of the divine eye, which observes the faithful.

The background of the temple has the main altar, which highlights a huge ball of the world or ORB in blue, along with the divine eye greatly all-seeing dominating the place. The altar is accompanied by floral offerings, three glasses of wine, one cup of water and one cup of tea.

Kienthuc/vietnamitasenmadrid