Sermons of His Holiness Ho Phap - Vol I

satisfaction with such idea, I was indescribably overjoyed; only one person
suffered but the entire country would rejoice. Actually, the future of the Cao
Đài religion is to shoulder the karma of all mankind on this earth, not only
Vietnam or our race. The exile of the children of the Supreme Being means
human sins have not been settled.
All have seen the Divine mechanism. It is a blessing for those who have been
to the heavenly realm and foreseen such destiny. It is not a dream. Based on
human deeds on earth, the karma has not reached its limit, i.e. we have to pay
until the good seed of the Supreme Being takes its root of peace in people’s
mind, produces flower and fruit on the Vietnam land. Only then will mankind
enjoy happiness. Otherwise, our sin will result in even harsher suffering. If we
do not have enough courage and determination to exercise His power, all
Divine Dignitaries, Sub-dignitaries, Disciples and young followers will face
future disasters, such as wars and plagues. It is nothing strange. We have
weathered the storms, survived the sinking ship and stood our ground here. It
means that the Supreme Being has sown this good seed as the basics for
universal happiness, peace and fraternity; our mutual love should be deeper
than that of blood ties.
Today, humanity in the entire world has endured severe suffering, and thus
regards us as the sacred seed chosen by the Supreme Being. As the seed for
universal happiness, it is boundless love which cannot be put into words. Such
is the ultimate and sublime influence of love. You should study it and put into
practice.

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26. THE MECHANISM OF UNIVERSAL FRATERNITY

The 29th day of the 6th month Đinh Hợi year (1947)

On His Holiness Quan Thánh Ðế Quân (Guan Sheng Di Jun) Day – 24 June Đinh
Hợi year (lunar calendar), I already preached about the mechanism of
salvation and universal fraternity.

We know that His Holy Body which is the Cao Đài religion has the sacred
mission in this world to save all humanity from sufferings and wars. The
Supreme Being lamented, “If the faith is one day late, humanity will suffer one
day more.” It was still peaceful at that time, and we thought He was urging us
to form the true faith. Five years later, the entire world suddenly plunged into
disaster. All male and female adepts can immediately see, and I am sure that
there has been no war as damaging as such since the appearance of man.
What a tragedy! Due to human frailty and lack of faith, we have committed
myriad sins against the Supreme Being.

I am very worried and suffer mentally when the killing goes on continuously
in our country. Reasoning leads us to think that the massacre and bloodshed
of our people are the result of our breaking promise with the Supreme Being,
and of our failure to fulfill our duties. If I am sinful, I bow and beg the Supreme
Being to mitigate the disaster during my mission. The Vietnam nation is under
oppression; we cannot succeed even if we want to. Nobody listens to us
because our people do not have enough virtue and political power. Let us try
and pray to the Supreme Being. If we are at fault, we pray that He will grant
me help to save our people from the massacre. He will mercifully show us how
to. We know that France and Vietnam do not hate each other. For 80 years, we
have shared the suffering, hardship, poverty, wealth, and honor. We have lived
together in deep affection. It is impossible that we cannot solve the problem.
We cannot deny that there is any reason to. They were bothered by the
Vietnamese mentality and lack of love in the past. The current tragedy results
from the persistence of those behind-the-time issues. As we do not have the
same mentality, we are bothered by each other. In order to alleviate their
resentment, we have a remedy; both should show love to each other and think
about the long-term relationship. By sharing the misery and kindling our
affection, we can settle this war which is unreasonable, worthless,
meaningless, and useless.

Tomorrow, I will bring the chime from the Bạch Ngọc Chung (a bell at the Holy
See) of the Supreme Being to Sài Thành (Sài Gòn) to awaken both sides to the

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long-term relationship as well as the brotherhood/ fraternity which is the
spirit and mission of the Cao Đài religion. I would like to shed light on the
truth that all the children of the Supreme Being must not claim the Cao Đài
religion as their own. We can say that we walk the path of good will, human
aspiration, and liberty of the conscience. We walk the path of mutual love and
suffering. It is a great cause which will bring the spirit of mankind to universal
fraternity. Those two paths combine to form our National Faith. The spirit of
the great cause is to have France and Vietnam unite in love. I would like to
repeat that the Cao Đài religion is not only the great cause of Vietnam, but also
other countries. The French will be the elder brother to resolve the conflicts
between them and Vietnam.
Tomorrow as I go to Sài Gòn, the entire faith must pray unanimously so that
they (the French) will light up their divine light and listen to the words of this
Divine Crane. I will awaken their soul to decide the future of the country and
also the entire earth.

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27. THE SUPREME BEING DESCENDS TO EARTH

The 30th day of the 7th month Đinh Hợi year (1947)

Today, I will preach about the Supreme Being’s descent to earth. I will preach
about His manifestation which has been published in the global news with
clear evidence, rather than falsehood.

Religions of any language will refer to Brahmanism as an example, which is an
ancient religion. Brahmanism has a legend about the first descent of the
Supreme Being as the first time period. The Supreme Being as Brahma came
to the Lhasa city of Tibet which is an ancient religion (I will preach about
Tibet first and then Lhasa).

In the past 10,000 years, the Supreme Being comes to that place every 50
years in visible form rather than in spirit like He comes to us now. This event
was published across all newspapers. When the Communist party rose to
overthrow the Russian monarchy, most of the royal family and imperial
officials/ mandarins were killed. The king of White Russia was killed during
the coup d’état. A royal member escaped and sought refuge in Tibet. Thanks to
the virtue of the Tibetans, the mandarins could escort him to the Holy See of
Tibet. Most of the people in the city were virtuous, because they were
governed by religion instead of secular power. The Dalai Lama provided
protection and care for the refugees. Thanks to his patriotism and loyalty to
the king, the royal member escaped the disaster with his family and relatives.
After 10 days of decent treatment, he felt safe and joyful but nostalgia kept
filling his heart. Because of affection for the king and homesickness, he came
to the Dalai Lama. From look of his face, the Dalai Lama could tell his feelings.
He immediately aid to the royal member, “The Supreme Being is going to
come as promised. You should wait a few months for His coming. If you see
Him, you will feel extraordinary comfort.”

The mandarins had been staying there for two previous months. They had
enquired the Dalai Lama about how the Supreme Being would come and what
He would look like. He replied, “If you want to know, please wait till then. I
only have an advice for you. There are bells hung around the Holy See. When
they all ring at the same time, the Supreme Being will come.” Fortunately,
when the day came, the mandarins out of curiosity entered the Holy See early.
After the worshipping ceremony, all the bells rang. The senior monks knelt
and prayed. The mandarins also knelt, but listened attentively. From afar,
there were rhythmic sounds of horse gallops which want on until they

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reached the temple gate. The Supreme Being slowly entered and sat on the
throne reserved for Him. The mandarins were awestruck; while the monks
completely prostrated, they were still kneeling and looked stealthily at Him.
His image was extremely magnificent which defied all words. His halo
illuminated the entire temple. He came every 50 years to give prophecies for
the next 50 years. I have read those prophecies, but cannot remember
whether they are in the book of Cao Đài doctrine or any other. I will look for
them and read out to you. People in the temple saw that He looked exactly like
the description in the Evidence Newspaper(?). They heard His voice and
listened to His sermon. After the sermon and the ceremony of the senior
monks, the image of the Supreme Being disappeared together with His halo.
The mandarins still did not believe. They borrowed a lamp and came to the
throne. His mark could still be seen on the velvet cushion. The Supreme Being
has come to the temples worshipping Him in the past 15 thousand years. He
has blessed this world for 10 thousand years. There are three temples
worshipping Him on earth:

1. The Lama temple in Tibet (Translator note: The Jokhang temple?)
2. The Roman Church (Translator note: Archbasilica of St. John Lateran?)
3. The Cao Đài Holy See

The Supreme Being has not come to the Roman church for 2,000 years. Why is
it? We can tell that either the church does not worship Him the right way or
the time has not come. Let us cherish hopes that the Supreme Being will
regularly come in spirit and teach us the Tao via the corbeille-a-bec, and He
will blessed us as much as the Lama temple. The Tibetans were glad to see His
image, while we have not. Let us wish that the entire nation loved Him,
unanimously kept our faith in Him, and would be loyal to the Faith. One day, if
He comes to us, such an honor will go down in history for generations like the
Lama temple. Will we receive such blessing? We will, but how soon depends
on the virtues of the Vietnamese race. Only when He comes in such image in
Vietnam to establish the Faith as a testament to human spirit, will we be able
to achieve universal peace and fraternity. Let us hope that it will happen soon.
The Tibetans could only receive it after 15 thousand years; so it is not certain
that we will enjoy it soon.

May the Vietnamese people who He recognizes as His beloved children have
enough virtue like the Tibetans so that we may receive the special blessing.
Otherwise, we will be late and unable to see Him; the damaging divide among
mankind will also prolong.

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28. THE MEANINGS OF MUSIC AND RITE (LITURGICAL MEANING)

Holy See, the 1st day of the 8th month Đinh Hợi (1947)

Today, I will preach about the meaning of Rite and Music.

For always, people have considered sound and appearance evil, but among the
basics of Confucianism are rite and music. As world-changing Confucianism,
The Great Faith must seek their principles as well as their exact meanings. We
do not understand their profound meaning when making offerings to the
Supreme Being during the Nhạc Tấu Huân Thiên (Music to present to God/
The Divine). Many times, we may feel tired in the legs and discouraged after
the drum roll and the seven-piece music. So do I. I reckon that because the
Supreme Being has special favour for Vietnam, everything decided by Him will
be the model for the entire world. Rite and music, which are always
performed during the offering ceremony, must have lofty and important
meaning.

During the early days of the Faith, I went to the Thủ Đức temple built by
Mr.Thơ. Because of disbelief, I asked His Holiness Lý Giáo Tông (Li Tai Pei –
The Divine Pope). He taught, “In the Court of God, there are two lines of poem;
on the right is ‘Eight types of soul evolve in praise of God’, on the left ‘All living
beings pray His name in tandem’.” I did not understand what they meant. I
kept asking about them, and was taught and came to the understanding that
during the creation of the universe, the Supreme Being was the source of vital
light who transformed into two bodies of vital energy; they merged with each
other into a great mass and produced an explosion sound called ‘bang’ or ‘ni’
which was changed into ‘Om’ by Buddhism (Om mani padme hum). Thanks to
that explosion, the eight types of soul transformed into living beings including
humans. The vital energy existed where that sound could be heard, i.e. there
was life there. If there was no sound in any realm, it would be destroyed and
there would be no life.

Therefore, when we use the sound instruments which are dead matters like
the drum and its lifeless buffalo leather, with our wisdom we produce sound
from them and revive them. That is, those Eight types of Soul are transformed
into life to follow the rituals before the Supreme Being. Thus, the Nhạc Tấu
Huân Thiên (Music presented to God) means the existence of sound. However,
the full meaning is that when we make offerings to the Supreme Being
according to the dharma, we hear and see Eight types of Soul transform, and
offer their life to Him.

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From now on, we shall regard the Nhạc Tấu Huân Thiên more precious than
offerings of the Three Treasures. Even if we are halfway in the temple, we
have to stop upon hearing the music. We must not walk in disorder, which will
lessen our respect for the Supreme Being. During those moments, we summon
the transformation of the Eight types of Soul and make offerings to the
Supreme Being. For that reason, rite and music actually are not a special
favour of the Supreme Being for Vietnam, but to revive the Eight types of Soul.
It is an offering He is happy to receive. Such significance allows Vietnam to
become the leader and model for all mankind; those titles are not above us.
From now on, the entire congregation should wholeheartedly show due
respect when you hear the Nhạc Tấu Huân Thiên.
Regarding the five incense sticks, I have often let the Confucianist scholars
explain in their own way. I know clearly that they represent the five types of
Qi/ energy. The Supreme Being transforms those five energies into five
elements throughout the universe, including Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and
Earth. Each element has its own color which has its own energy. We cannot
sense or feel their flavour and vital energy. During the ceremony, the five
incense sticks follow such belief, i.e. to reverse the dharma into the five
energies and make offerings to the Supreme Being. Only He enjoys the
reversed dharma, or in a clearer sense, the five energies. To be more exact, the
Eight types of Soul require the five energies to transform; it is what is meant
by “All living beings pray His name in tandem”. The Cao Đài religion reverse
the dharma to offer the life of the Eight types of Soul which were created at
the beginning of the universe by two bodies of vital energy. Today, we hold
the solemn ceremony to offer back the vital energy, which pleases the
Supreme Being because He sees life returned to Him. The entire congregation
should wholeheartedly study the miraculous rite so as to attain the true
dharma of the Supreme Being.

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29. MID-AUTUMN FESTIVAL
The 14th day of the 8th month August Đinh Hợi (1947)
Today, we hold the Mid-autumn Festival of the Mother Buddha according to
the teachings of His Holiness Lý Giáo Tông. According to the original doctrine,
since the ancient time, i.e. the First and Second Amnesty, the Mother Buddha
has welcome liberated souls back at the Banquet of Peach in the Diêu Trì
Realm. Religious history says that entrance to the Banquet is granted to those
souls by the Supreme Being.
In the early days, the Mother Buddha came to the Hiệp Thiên Đài (Divine
Alliance Members/ Legislative Body) to be mother of Qi, i.e. the vital energy
which gives life to all living beings. She uses the dharma of energy to create
the universe. As Qi is related to duties of the Hiệp Thiên Đài, the Mother
Buddha formed the Hiệp Thiên Đài first as Dharma where She reigns, and then
formed Cửu Trùng Đài (The Executive Body). She called Herself a friend of
living beings with the title ‘Thiếp’, and revealed the secrets unknown before to
anyone about Her role in relation to the Supreme Being. She revealed it all
without fear of the rules by the Court of God. In order to build the cause for
Her children, She can disclose them and no one can stop that.
At that time, She said, “When His Holiness Cao Thượng Phẩm’ Mother passes
away, the Faith will be fully established.” Before the day she passed away, the
Mother Buddha delivered sermons with the title ‘Mother’ and called us
‘children’. The day the Faith was fully established was during the Mid-autumn
Festival. His Holiness Lý Giáo Tông did not say clearly, but we understand that
the Cao Đài religion has become the National Faith.
At the moment, the Cao Đài religion has gone into Religious History. All
mankind has seen the Mother Buddha issue the Divine Stamp to establish our
National Faith.

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30. THE NINE DIVINE PLANES

The 15th day of the 8th month Đinh Hợi (1947)

Dear Dignitaries, Sub-dignitaries, male and female disciples, and the young
ones!

It is now the second construction of the Nine Divine Planes where I have
preached twice. The first was in 1936 during the Đại Tường (Major Requiem-
A ceremony held after 581 days from date of death) of His Holiness Quyền
Giáo Tông (The Interim Pope). The Nine-Divine-Plane ceremony is to venerate
Him. It was 12 years ago; the Nine Divine Planes have transformed this time.
Last time, I prophesied that in love we would part and spread the doctrine of
the Supreme Being everywhere. During those 12 years, there were so much
suffering and hardship brought upon the Faith. The Cao Đài seed has been
sown into the minds of people in modern countries. The prophecies of
separation came true in the past 12 years. Now, the Nine Divine Planes
convene again, which is proof that the Cao Đài religion has had influence on
countries around the world, and that the National Faith has come into being.

The domestic chaos was already prophesied by the Supreme Being and Divine
Beings many times from 1926, rather than only mentioned on one day. It was
first mentioned by His Holiness Lý Giáo Tông when He was still in solemn
power. During the spring of the year of the Cat (1927), He served at the Court
of God, and prohibited séances from the New Year’s Eve (30th December, lunar
calendar). At that time, Divine Dignitaries did not know how strict His rule
was. As we had daily meetings with Divine Beings like regular meals, we could
not stop it; it was like hunger in our spirit. Thus, His Holiness Quyền Giáo
Tông told me to assist the séance. His Holiness Lý descended and delivered
some points, saying He would be back. On the first (of January), He descended
again and punished all. He lamented, “I knelt at the Court of God for seven full
days to plead for mitigation of the destruction about to befall the earth;
Vietnam was the holy land but could not avoid it! You Disciples have no idea. I
prayed seven days for the large cities like Sài Gòn, Huế, Hà Nội, Hải Phòng, Gia
Định, Chợ Lớn, but could not obtain absolution. Human sins are too grave;
they deserve it!” The Sacerdotal Council had solution to it; the Supreme Being
had said, “If the Faith is one day late, damage to mankind is immeasurable.” If
all Dignitaries had helped Him to teach His children, the disaster could have
been avoided. Unfortunately, during the past 22 years, the Sacerdotal Council
endured a lot of harsh suffering, and lost many lives to the attacks,
imprisonment, tortures, and exhaustion from asceticism. Divine Dignitaries

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lost their lives amid the sufferings, not only the Dignitaries but also all the
children of the Supreme Being.
I am moved thinking of how many lives of His children have been sacrificed
for the formation of His Holy Body in the past 22 years. To be certain with the
accounts, I have to subtract the 5 years and 2 months I was in exile, while at
the Holy See adepts were banished to Côn Nôn, Sơn La, and Lao Bảo.
In this war, if the children of the Supreme Being are to preserve our life, we
have to sacrifice ourselves this time to exchange death for life and turn chaos
into peace. Those are the Religious Martyrs. The Bát Quái Đài (the Palace of
Divine Beings) has paid a lot for the glory of perfect virtue and beauty to bring
the Faith to its respectful beginning. We shall be their hands and feet to unite
the country and the world, to spread the true doctrine, and to amplify
pacifism.
There is still long way to go; the Faith has to reach perfect virtue and beauty. I
hope that we will achieve satisfactory results so that the true physiognomy of
Cao Đài religion will be manifested. Let us pray to the Supreme Being and the
Mother Buddha to protect His Holy Body, lessen the suffering, and remove the
obstacles so that we can spread to the entire world and create universal peace
and fraternity. Otherwise, the war will still go on.

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31. EXPLANATION OF THE MOTHER BUDDHA PRAYER

Explanation of Holy Mother Prayer at the Cửu Long Palace (Temple of
Gratitude) at 4p.m. on the 15th day of the 8th month Đinh Hợi year (1947)

Today is the grand ceremony of the Diêu Trì Kim Mẫu (the Mother Buddha). I
think the entire congregation should know the power of the Mother Buddha,
and why we worship Her. In order to know Her power, I will explain the
Mother Buddha prayer, which we chant every day. Before we start, I should
also mention who delivered the prayer, when and where.

The prayer was delivered to the Kim Biên Congregation (Cambodia) at the
Gratitude Chamber of Historian Huỳnh Hữu Lợi family. Before this, we only
knew the Mother Buddha came to the Hiệp Thiên Đài to form the Cao Đài
religion. The poems of the Nine Female Immortals revealed the rationale
behind the religion, but we did not know Her power yet. At Kim Biên, all the
Dignitaries of the Foreign Mission Sacerdotal Council attended the delivery
session. I came during the ceremony on the Mother Buddha Day. The Eighth
Female Immortal descended to the séance in the main hall which was assisted
by me. There were many witnesses. The Disciples and an agnostic named Hiếu
(who called me uncle) were sitting in the front yard. They saw halos descend
on all four sides of the Gratitude Chamber. After the prayer was delivered,
they said there was light zipping around like comets without knowing that we
were in a séance. My niece and many Disciples stood witness to it. Now, I will
explain each line of the prayer so it is easy for you to understand.

"Tạo Hóa Thiên huyền vi Thiên Hậu,
Chưởng Kim Bàn Phật Mẫu Diêu Trì."

The Ninth Heaven is called the Tạo Hoá Thiên (Realm of Creation) which is
reigned by a Being with the power of creation named Thiên Hậu (Heavenly
Mother). She reigns over the Kim Bàn (Golden Basin), i.e. oversees the divine
hierarchy and directs souls with the name Phật Mẫu Diêu Trì. In East Asia,
people often call the Mother Buddha “Mẹ sanh” (Birth Mother) who is
worshipped as statues. Thanks to the propagation of the Nine Female
Immortals, Her worship continues to this day among the spirit mediums.
Thanks to these mediums, all East Asia knows the Mother Buddha is the
Mother of mankind.

"Sanh quang dưỡng dục quần nhi,"

She uses the vital energy to raise Her children, i.e. all living beings.

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"Chơn linh phối nhứt thân vi Thánh hình."
The spirit from the Supreme Being comes into the physical body to form our
visible form. When we die, the spirit leaves our body.
"Thiên Cung xuất vạn linh tùng pháp,"
Heaven gives birth to all living beings, so all follow the heavenly dharma to
come into being.
"Hiệp âm dương hữu hạp biến sanh."
She unites and transforms the Ying and Yang energies into all living beings.
"Càn Khôn sản xuất hữu hình,"
The universe was once empty/ nothingness. The Mother Buddha gave birth to
all living beings.
"Bát hồn vận chuyển hóa thành chúng sinh."
All Eight types of soul, including Matter, Plant, Animal, Human, Angel, Saint,
Immortal, and Buddha, come from the Golden Basin of the Mother Buddha.
Eight divine ranks of soul transform into physical matters, plants, animals and
humans together called living beings.
"Cộng vật loại huyền linh đồ nghiệp,"
She unite all living beings to build the great cause, i.e. the path for them to
elevate each other to divine positions.
"Lập tam tài định kiếp hòa căn."
“Tam tài” include Heaven, Earth and Human. The Mother Buddha determines
the destiny for all living beings on earth.
"Chuyển luân định phẩm cao thăng,"
Reincarnation, birth and death are the path for us to attain noble divine
positions. We are born either to pay our karma according to the law of karma,
or gain merit for divine positions. Some may also borrow living beings to
attain more noble positions.
"Hư Vô Bát Quái trị thần qui nguyên."

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She uses the invisible energy to build the Eight-trigram palace where souls
returns to their home. She has the power to bring them back to the Supreme
Being.

"Diệt tục kiếp trần duyên oan trái,"

The Mother Buddha lays the path for us to pay our karma. She has power to
change the cycle of rebirth, and allows us to gain merit to pay our karma.

"Chưởng đào tiên thủ giải trường tồn."

In the Diêu Trì Realm, the Mother Buddha condense the vital energy into a
mass called the peach of immortality. It gives us eternal life in the divine
realm. She holds the power to revive the spirit so we can live eternally in the
divine realm.

"Nghiệp hồng dẫn tử hồi môn,
Chí công định vị vĩnh tồn Thiên cung."

Our merit is determined by the Mother Buddha. She also takes us back to our
original cause based on which the Supreme Being determines our position.

"Chủ âm quang thường tùng Thiên mạng,
Ðộ chơn thần nhứt vãng nhứt lai."

The Master of the Yin realm, i.e. the earthly realm which separates heaven and
hell, follows the order of the Supreme Being. The Mother Buddha preserves
our spirit, bringing us back and forth.

"Siêu thăng Phụng Liễn qui khai,"

Our ascension is supported by the heavenly vehicle called ‘Phụng Liễn’. It
opens the path for us to go back (to the divine realm).

"Tiên cung Phật xứ Cao Ðài xướng danh."

In the realm of the Divine, all souls called on by the Supreme Being must obey
the Mother Buddha to save beings.

"Hội Ngươn hữu Chí linh huấn chúng,"

The Upper Cycle is followed by the Middle Cycle, and then the Last Cycle.
Then, we return to the Upper/ First Cycle, which is called Re-cycle. As the Last

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Cycle of the Third Manvantara is coming to an end to usher in the First Cycle
of the Fourth Manvantara, the Supreme Being comes to teach living beings.

"Ðại Long Hoa nhơn chủng hòa ki (cơ)."

The Grand Dragon Flower Festival was prophesied to be the Amnesty for all
ranks of soul, regardless of their race and nation, which will be unified into
one.

"Tam Kỳ khai hiệp Thiên thi,
Khoa môn Tiên vị ngộ kỳ Phật duyên."

The Third Amnesty starts according to Divine Plan to hold the examination for
worthy Immortals who can reach Buddhahood.

"Trung khổ hải độ thuyền Bát Nhã,
Phước từ bi giải quả trừ căn."

The Mother Buddha uses the Prajna Boat to save souls from the sea of
suffering. From above, the Supreme Being with His mercy grants blessing to
deliver us from karma and sin.

"Hườn hồn chuyển đọa vi thăng,"

Prayer will revive the damned souls and bring them to ascension.

"Cửu Tiên hồi phục Kim Bàn Chưởng Âm."

As the Nine Female Immortals return (to the divine realm), the Mother
Buddha governs also the souls in hell.

"Thập Thiên Can bao hàm vạn tượng,
Tùng Ðịa Chi hóa trưởng Càn Khôn."

The ten Heavenly Stem include Giáp, Ất, Bính, Ðinh, Mậu, Kỷ, Canh, Tân, Nhâm,
Quý; they unite with the twelve Earthly Branches of Tý, Sửu, Dần, Mẹo, Thìn,
Tỵ, Ngọ, Mùi, Thân, Dậu, Tuất, Hợi to transform into all forms in the vast
universe, and expand it.

"Trùng hườn phục vị Thiên môn,"

She brings us back to our home which is the Divine Realm.

"Ngươn linh hóa chủng quỉ hồn nhứt thăng."

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The spirits can multiply themselves, i.e. create more dhammakaya. They can
attain the supreme dharma of descension (in spirit) to attain merit. Devil souls
are also allowed to walk the same path with Angels, Saints, Immortals and
Buddhas to create good karma.

"Vô siêu đọa quả căn hữu pháp,"

There is neither ascension nor damnation. All karma is regulated by (divine)
laws.

"Vô khổ hình nhơn kiếp lưu oan.
Vô địa ngục, vô quỉ quan,"

There is no more punishment. The Mother Buddha eliminates all retribution
in hell and removes those realms.

"Chí Tôn đại xá nhứt trường qui nguyên."

Because of the word ‘đại xá’ (grand amnesty), the Cao Đài religion is called ‘3è
Amnistie de Dieu en Orient’. The Supreme Being grants absolution to bring all
His children back to unite with Him.

"Chiếu nhũ lịnh Từ Huyên thọ sắc,
Ðộ anh nhi Nam, Bắc, Ðông, Tây."

Under the command of the Supreme Being, our Mother has the duty of saving
living beings everywhere, i.e. all His children.

"Kỳ khai tạo nhứt linh đài,
Diệt hình tà pháp cường khai đại đồng."

It is time to form the Great Faith as a Divine Model to unite the beliefs of all
mankind. It will have enough power to destroy evil and lead mankind to
universal fraternity.

"Hiệp vạn chủng nhứt môn đồng mạch,"

It will unite all mankind into one family. There will only one Faith. All will be
as one; there will be no nation, race, and religion. When this comes true, the
world will be in peace. (La religion sera une, le monde sera un, l'humanité sera
une, une en nation, en race et en religion)

"Qui thiên lương quyết sách vận trù."

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The Mother Buddha summons the divine conscience of Her children and
guides those with good hearts.

"Xuân Thu, Phất Chủ, Bát Du,
Hiệp qui Tam Giáo hữu cầu Chí chơn."

According to the philosophies of the three religions, ‘Xuân Thu’ (the Spring
and Autumn Annals) stands for the Saints, ‘Phất Chủ’ (the Duster of Purity) for
the Immortals, and ‘Bát Du’ (the Alms bowl) for the Buddhas. She unites them
all into Her original dharma.

"Phục nguyên nhơn hườn tồn Phật tánh,
Giáo hóa hồn hữu hạnh hữu duyên."

She restores the Buddha nature of created souls who were ordered by the
Supreme Being to descend and be friends with living beings in order to save
them. Because they are infatuated with earthly pleasures, the Supreme Being
awakens them to their Buddha nature and bring them back home. The
estimated number is 1,000 thousand created souls among whom, 60 thousand
were saved by the Buddha, and 20 thousand by Laozi, while 920 thousand are
still lost. The Mother Buddha comes to teach and determine their destiny.

"Trụ căn quỉ khí cửu tuyền,
Quảng khai thiên thượng tạo quyền chí công."

The Mother Buddha keeps all devil souls in hell, while opening Heaven’s gate
to exercise the Supreme Being’s power on earth.

"Lịnh Mẫu Hậu khai tông định Ðạo,"

‘Mẫu Hậu” refers to Diêu Trì Kim Mẫu or Thiên Hậu Thánh Mẫu; She formed
the religion to guide us along the Tao.

"Ân dưỡng sanh đảm bảo hồn hài.
Càn khôn Tạo hóa sánh tài,"

She not only gives birth to and raises us but also protects us. Her grace is as
great as the universe.

"Nhứt triêu nhứt tịch kỉnh bài mộ khang."

We visit the Mother Buddha every morning and evening like with our earthly
parents. ‘Mộ khang’ means morning and evening visits or enquiry about Her
well-being.

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"Nam Mô Diêu Trì Kim Mẫu Tạo Hóa Huyền Thiên cảm bái,
Nam Mô Ðại Từ Ðại Bi năng hỉ xả, Thiên Hậu Chí Tôn đại bi đại ái."
The One who holds the power to create the entire universe is called the Thiên
Hậu Chí Tôn (the Supreme Heavenly Mother) or Đức Diêu Trì Kim Mẫu who
has great mercy and compassion.
According to the true and original dharma, creation requires Yin and Yang.
Our vital energy contains positive and negative energy like the male and
female of living beings. Only when a religion has both Yin and Yang, will it be
eternal. Jesus Christ was crucified head up on the Holy Cross as a symbol of
Yang/ positive. Saint Pierre who was His first Apostle was crucified head
down as a symbol of Yin/ negative. Thanks to the unity of Yin and Yang, i.e. the
secret dharma, Christianity has been in existence for 2,000 years and cannot
be destroyed by anyone.
The Supreme Being could have sent His children to establish this Faith like the
Gautama Buddha, Jesus, Confucian, etc. Instead, He Himself comes here in
spirit, which carries the greatest significance. At the beginning, He asked the
Mother Buddha to come and be friend with us in order to protect, raise, and
guide us. No grace is as great as Hers, because no one loves the children as the
Mother. After the formation of the Faith, She handed us over to the Supreme
Being. The Mother Buddha holds the Yin energy, while the Supreme Being
holds the Yang energy. With the unity of Yin and Yang, the Cao Đài religion
will rely on the united power. One day, the Cao Đài religion will have the
power of creation which is as enormous as the creation of the universe.

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32. THE VIRTUE OF THE VIETNAMESE RACE

The 15th day of the 8th month Đinh Hợi year (1947)

Today, I will discuss with you, sisters and brothers, the virtue of the
Vietnamese race. Whether we are male or female, and regardless of which
religion we follow, we should not forget the essential faith passed down by
our race, i.e. faith in God or the Supreme Being.

When people on this planet know the Religion of the Supreme Being, all will
leave behind their own moral framework/ standards. For always, the
Vietnamese have kept our virtuous nature. According to justice, the Supreme
Being comes to establish the Great Faith, sowing our good and virtuous nature
into the nature/ heart of people all over the world.

I was born in Tây Ninh; my ancestors all lived here. Therefore, there is no joy
or happiness greater than that of building the Faith on this land. I used to sit in
contemplation. To tell the truth, most of the brothers and sisters in my
hometown who have known me since childhood thought I was deluding
people when they saw me preach about the Faith. They saw that nobody
dared to go on mission but I was actively spreading the Faith. Now that we
have accomplished the mission, they are surprised by the thought that I was a
regular friend with them who had nothing special, but have changed
unexpectedly since I joined the Faith. It is because I rely on virtue and moral
standards which are in line with local customs and rites and which have due
influence on the people to bring the true doctrine of the Supreme Being into
being. I have shown them the holy blessing granted to our race and its
immeasurable significance to Tây Ninh. Let us pray that Heaven will bless us
by guiding our sisters and brothers to this Temple of the Supreme Being
where He has displayed the Faith’s physiognomy.

You sisters should not be afraid to step up and create examples for later
followers; the Supreme Being creates this divine cause for all mankind. I
believe that He only do good for the world. In response, what have we done to
create value? Christianity was started by the poor and hungry and by a
begging Founder, but has become a great cause. Meanwhile, all our efforts are
worthless like foam and fern on the river. Words and deeds within the family
are not enough. A microphone used in a family is only loud enough for that
family. In order to shape the mentality of a nation, we must improve our
capabilities.

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Today is not like before. You, sisters and brothers, can walk through this door
freely on the path of evolution of our race. Now that you have joined this Faith,
I would like to say thanks to all you sisters and brothers.
Extract from the Sermon on the 30th day of the 9th month Đinh Hợi Year
(12/11/1947)
The Creator of all living beings is the Mother Buddha. The spirit granted by the
Supreme Being, the form by the Mother Buddha; the mind by the Father, the
body by the Mother. All can see that in the temple of the Great Merciful Father
there are hierarchies and titles, but in the temple of the Buddha Mother there
is only white, i.e. no one is of higher rank than others.

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33. THE END-OF-TERM CEREMONY AT THE SCHOOL OF VIRTUE
School of Virtue, the 16th day of the 8th month Đinh Hợi year (1947)
I would like to invite the teachers and benefactors of the School of Virtue to
come in before the Master.
Confucianists said, “Poor families know if their children are pious; troubled
countries know if their mandarins are loyal.” The hardship moves my heart to
intense feelings when I saw your dedication to the young generations, i.e. the
future of the country. The Faith will also depend on them. The Supreme Being
and the Sacerdotal Council understand and acknowledge your sufferings.
What a tragedy! In this time of chaos, our rules and customs have been
destroyed. Our people are going after materialism and letting go of virtue. We
have enemies in front of us; one who has enough power to destroy us is the
Communist International. They have caused the human mind to become
degenerate due to their inclination toward materialism. As long as the war
persists, destruction continues; destruction must be balanced with
preservation, but we alone are not enough. The Supreme Being founded this
school to teach His children to preserve human life not only at this time but
for eternity. We have only drawn the first stroke of the critical duty He has
assigned to us. It will not bear fruit now, but in the future of the young
generation. You have understood the significance; and regardless of title,
hardship, hunger, suffering, and poverty, you have moulded/ shaped the mind
of the young ones. There is no grace as great as that. The Qin and Han glories
are still recorded in history. The mind of the young ones will live forever,
indestructible by any force. You are like architects in charge of each stroke
and detail. You will observe the good and bad so as to perfect the virtue (of
man) and beauty (of things). The wall which the Supreme Being has entrusted
to you will develop into a citadel in the future.
I would like to thank you and rely on you.

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34. ECONOMICS AND FINANCE
The 16th day of the 8th month Đinh Hợi year [1947]
Here is a reply to the speech by the Chief of the Economics and Finance
Department which was delivered with a truthful heart. If our people follow his
direction, our future will be solid. The economy of each country is related to
that of the world; only when each country is stable will the world has stability.
Unfortunately, from before colonization until 80 years later, our economy has
been rather empty. The truth is we have had an economy since the
ostracization of Đường Nhơn coffee (Chinese living in Vietnam or Vietnamese
has Chinese origin). Since the old days, our people have been inclined to work
in the imperial system. As a result, our economy has been left in the hand of
foreigners. We were lucky to leave it to Đường Nhơn who are our brothers of
the same root. Otherwise, the damage would be inestimable.
Now that our people understand that economy will decide the fate of our
country, my dream will come true. If Đường Nhơn transfer their capabilities to
us and if they consider us of the same race and help us build up the economy,
we will be able to achieve our goals. China’s capabilities can only help us
develop the domestic economy. According to the latest figures, in 1935 there
were 1,800,000 or at least 1,000,000 ventures, mostly agricultural capitalists.
Let us lay the commercial ‘egg’ in the Faith. If it survives, that seed may
produces flower and fruit not only forour country but also the world. The Cao
Đài religion originates from the ancient civilization of East Asia which
influences both China and India. With their support, our economy will be
strong. In the current situation, we can only develop the economy in
cooperation with China and India, provided that we have the capabilities to. If
we sow the seed and it grows, we need to find ways for it to grow on the
fertile land of China and India. Then, we will earn enough to support our
country.

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35. THE REASONS FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF CAODAISM

His Holiness Lý Giáo Tông’s Day (The Divine Pope’s Day) – the 18th day of the 8th
month Đinh Hợi year [2nd October 1947]

Today, I will preach about the reasons why the Cao Đài religion comes into
being is this period. According to the True Doctrine, each manvantara of the
earth brings about a new level of progress. Each manvantara lasts 36
thousand years, and has three Cycles each lasting 12 thousand years.
According to Buddhist dharma, the Upper Cycle or Opening Cycle of each
manvantara is under the authority of the Buddhas; the Middle Cycle of the
Immortals; and the Last Cycle of the Saints. We can recognize the divine and
secret dharma of the Supreme Being that when we are young, we are taught;
when we grow up, we learn to create a name for ourselves; when we become
an adult, we rule ourselves. The Buddhas teach, the Immortals practise, and
the Saints regulate. The Last Cycle is under the authority of the Saints, when
humans struggle for life. It is the Cycle of struggle the philosophy of which is
to regulate and create mechanisms to preserve human life.

Now the Last Cycle of the Third Manvantara is coming to an end to usher in
the Upper Cycle of the Fourth Manvantara. Our planet is very much behind the
time. Three thousand years ago we were already behind Mercury, Venus and
Jupiter among the seven other planets; these three have gone through seven
manvantaras while we are only approaching our fourth. Therefore, the
Supreme Being had spirits from the other planets come and be friends with us.
Not only evolutionary but also created souls were sent to guide us on earth.
We do not know exactly how many, but according to Buddhism, they were
sent here in 24 trips by the Prajna Boat. The rough estimate is 10 million
souls. The Buddha saved 60 thousand, and Laozi 20 thousand; there are still
92 thousand who have not escaped suffering in the Last Cycle. Thus, the
Supreme Being comes to establish the Cao Đài religion. In the Upper Cycle, the
Buddhas delivered teachings; so will they in the First Cycle of the Fourth
Manvantara. Let us explore this philosophy. As the Saints are helpless, the
Buddhas have to come and awaken souls to the spiritual path away from the
chaos. They help the souls remember that their spirit come from the Supreme
Being and the spiritual must always be kept in their mind. If they keep chasing
after materialism, they will be trapped in the cycle of rebirth. That is, the
Buddhas bring humans back to their original nature.

The prophecies say that each time Brahma, Shiva or Krishna comes to govern
the world. The current situation lets us know that government is not enough

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because such power does not win people’s heart. There must be education,
because they are the basics of government. Government without education
will result in failure. The Buddhas are responsible for education. The Saints
govern. Unfortunately, there is only government in this world. On Europe,
there are people who have cultivated Buddhist dharma to supernatural level
and their spirit can leave the body to travel in the cloud. They observe the
dharma and realize there are two sides to the Supreme Being’s politics:

1. Government of the universe
2. Education by the Paradise of Extreme Joy

They assertively bear witness to it.

We see the Supreme Being formed the Cao Đài Religion. Why is it called ‘Cao
Đài’? In ancient times, if people wanted to plead to the Immortals or Buddhas,
they had to build a very tall thatched tower called ‘Thảo Đài’ (Plant/ Thatched
Tower). Today, the Supreme Being establishes Cao Đài as the Holy place for
Angels, Saints, Immortals and Buddhas to come and be friend with Him, and
unite all mankind into one regardless of their race, skin color, and mentality;
all will be governed by the law of karma. All human individuals and societies
will be subject to this law. Little karma allows us to evolve quickly, while
heavy karma slows us down. Why does France have a noble spirit? They have
done both bad and good. What we are seeing is bad but carries in it good
karma. For example, it does not matter if we close our eyes and walk past poor
people; if we are compassionate and bring them to more lofty and happy
places, we have done them good but also caused resentment. At school, if the
teacher ignores the students, they will get lazy; but if he is strict, it is normal
for his students to resent him. It is easy to close our eyes and walk past.
Correcting others’ manners may be both right and wrong. If the teacher uses
rod, the students say he is cruel; but without the rod, they will not study,
although their study may not do him any good. France is influenced by
Christianity which has enough virtue and divinity to educate less evolved
races and to create universal fraternity. Such a missionary spirit has been
instilled in the mind of the French. When they go to other countries to teach
their people, those people do not listen. Beating breeds resentment. They only
likes leisure which leads them to the wrong direction. They therefore do both
good and bad. Such good and bad karma combines to form the merit of France,
thanks to their efforts in uniting countries.

Thanks to Christianity, Europe has received the most divine blessing in the
past 2,000 years. Our Saint Confucius was gentle: He did not impose His rules

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on anyone, unlike the Western Saint(s) who forced the people to follow. I
think compulsion is more beneficial.
The Supreme Being said universal fraternity has been implemented but has
not succeeded. He now comes to bring it to success and unites mankind to the
same origin with the Cao Đài religion as the origin. The Upper Cycle is reigned
by the Buddha(s). As Saints fail to govern, Buddhas come to save; as there are
strict people, there are gentle ones. If government cannot succeed, only kind
words can. Therefore, the beginning of the Fourth Manvantara is under the
authority of Buddhas in line with the true dharma.

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36. THE MECHANISM OF WORLD TRANSITION

Holy See, the 1st day of the 9th month Đinh Hợi year [1947] at 12 p.m.

I remember the time when the Supreme Being first came to reveal His name.
He promised His disciples the mechanism of world transition during that first
séance which baffled many intellectuals. Let us seek to understand the
meaning of transition. Philosophy defines it as shift from the current age to a
new one due to no more suitability or too much rigidity; the divine
mechanism is certainly subject to change as well.

Transition means a change from the old to the new. In this token, we see that
the moral frameworks which have roots in the distant past are all criticised.
People have become cruel, violent and unruly; moral obligations have been
removed; human minds are not alike; there is no more codependence for life;
this rule has almost been abolished. Thus, we see the tragedies of war, mutual
killing for one’s own life, and deep hatred, which have rendered humans cruel.
It has become hard to survive. On reflection, the Taoist scripture said, “It will
rain with oil and shine with fire.” This phenomenon will happen just like
prophesied. Due to hardship in making a living, people are killing each other.
According to estimation, there are 2,057 million people on earth without
consideration of the recent wars which have reduced the number a great deal.
Life will still become harder. As life resources dwindle, mankind will fight
even harder.

I have studied and found the definition of transition as change in era. Religious
scriptures show striking similarities between centuries and eras. The current
tragedies are similar to those before.

First, it started with the black race, i.e. the Brahma people or Indian people.
The Supreme Being trusted the destiny of this planet to them, because they
are His eldest sons. The Supreme Being let them lead both the physical and
spiritual; no other people were as honored as them. India was the first to have
religion and became king of the earth. Despite being blessed with the highest
power, they became discriminating, fought and killed all other races. We are
now in the same situation. This is why the Indian lost their power. The
Supreme Being then handed the power to the grey-skinned people, i.e. the
Bengali or Benares, so they could change and govern the people. He also
trusted them with Brahmanism and the responsibility to establish the religion
and cultivate the people. However, the grey-skinned people did not fulfill their
duties; the cruelty persisted. The Supreme Being had to choose the Olivatres

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as the governor and master of this earth, but they did not carry out their
duties either. Consequently, a disaster befell the Southeast Asia region which
used to belong the Malaccan people. It was destroyed by the ocean, and almost
only the Malaccan island remained. The Supreme Being again trusted the
power to the people of Egypt who were the generation of the new world. The
Peruvian are descendants of such people. At that time, America did not exist;
around the equator were dried up hills like the current Saharan desert. It was
the land of the ancient Atlantean. The modern world have to bow to their
civilization, but they could not retain their loftiness. They killed other races
and did not deserve to be king or teacher of the world. As mankind were
losing their kindness/ conscience, the Supreme Being created the Great
Deluge which gave birth to the new world. Then came the Asian people of
China. Do not think that the Chinese have always been one race. They were
united from different races who share only the written language, but not the
spoken one. Our country also has root from China. When the Chinese people
lost their religion, the Supreme Being gave the power to the Caucasian people,
including those near Mongol and the Caspian race (i.e. Afghanistan and
Yugoslavia). They spread over and occupied Europe to build their country.
Instead of teaching and governing the world, they let people kill each other. If
the power shifts, the earth will continue to change. The Caucasian will fall into
the same situation with the ancient Chinese. The coming transition which the
Supreme Being has planned will be drastic; it will happen again like before. I
am sure that there will be another great upheaval on this planet. What is it
for? So that the Caucasian people will hand the power over to a new race
called the Lucid/ Wise race to lead the world.
What a tragedy! The natural law as recorded in the ancient scripture keeps
playing itself out; the course of evolution continues in one direction. I am
afraid that mankind will still tread the beaten path and become even more
sinful. Therefore, the Supreme Being establishes the Cao Đài religion as a
Temple to worship lofty and tremendous faith. Only by guiding human
conscience can we avoid the disaster stipulated by the Divine plan.
As His Holy Body, can we help Him solve it? If not, the tragedy will continue.
He would like Vietnam to be the Holy Land and to let mankind know that our
country will bring salvation to His children; it is our duty. If we fail, it will be
our fault.

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37. THE SUPREME BEING’S PROMISE TO MANKIND

Holy See, the 15th day of the 9th month Đinh Hợi year [1947]

Today, we will perform the rituals at noon and during the free time I will
preach about the religious doctrine. Each of our deed will represent the Holy
Body of the Supreme Being. Studying will help achieve our goals; good
knowledge will solidify our steps and erase our uncertainty about misdeed
because we know the truth. The Supreme Being has promised mankind that
He would come to grant us the True Religion to teach the truth to His children;
we shall use our mind to seek and understand the truth thoroughly.

Last Friday, I heard from the radio that the United Nations have convened to
plan the establishment of worldwide politics which will not only unite all
countries but also all races. Such theory has clear and sufficient reasoning to
set up a political regime with its own constitution, politics, and army like a
country. The initiators of the theory said that the entire mankind is still vague
in doubting its feasibility. They have to think about the past: If anyone said
water can be used for transportation and to change the world, we would not
believe; but now there are battleships that can carry up to 80 thousand tons
around the world. People did not believe in electrical energy, but now it has lit
up all over the world. When someone talked about radio, human flying and
space exploration, people would not believe. But now all of these have become
reality. I strongly believe that they (the initiator) will achieve their goals and
the Supreme Being’s promise will come true. In the Divine messages, He
declared assertively that He came to create a new world for universal
fraternity. If the Divine plan does not come true, He will break the promise
with His children. I am sure that He will never break it because He has fulfilled
99 promises; there is only this one left.

I have sought the law of physical relativity of the entire mankind and living
beings on this earth. What is that law? There are two laws - one of physical
relativity and the other of spiritual relativity – in the entire universe. Those
natural laws create the universe and human societies. All societies and
individuals are under their influence; all mankind are under the influence of
the seven emotions. The image of the seven snakes is actually the image of
human; those seven states of mind constitute our countenance. Only when
there is happiness is there anger; the same with sorrow and joy, love and hate;
only desire stands on its own. Desire can give rise to hate, anger, love, sorrow,
and joy. It has special power to control the others. Such is the natural
physiognomy of creation. The Supreme Being has said that if there is Yin,

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there is Yang; if there is hot, there is cold. If there were only Yin and no Yang
which is the sun, the seven planets and all mankind perhaps would not
survive. If there were only the sun and no moon which is Yin, all living beings
including human would not exist, i.e. there would be no universe without Yin
and Yang. The law of relativity which creates the universe, either physical or
spiritual, instates that if there is success there is failure, if there is victory
there is defeat, if there is strength there is weakness, if there is kindness there
is cruelty; it is a natural law. Why are people so aggressive and cruel? To
activate the law of relativity, i.e. the Tao requires this law to bring the world
back to kindness and virtue. The Supreme Being lets mankind become cruel to
the point that they no longer respect heaven and earth. It is His arrangement
for the existence of cruelty and kindness. Who will He bestows kindness on?
The law is perfectly just in that the sinful will have to pay (for the karma),
while the kind will be rewarded. The invisible divine power which shapes the
destiny of mankind and the universe follows the same law. Otherwise, why
should we do good? If the Faith suffers for nothing and the cruel are respected
and honoured, there would be no justice on earth. Therefore, the philosophy
of doctor Stern says that the law of relativity has the power to shape the
destiny of the entire world. He has only touched on its physical aspect but not
the invisible aspect.
The physical world must be controlled by certain power. Cruelty is reigning
this world because people do not have such law of relativity. Thus, the power
of kindness cannot eliminate it, and it keeps on going its way. The world is
becoming cruel as a way to survive, but such cruelty has its limit. The world is
now divided into two powers – Communism and Nationalism; half of the
world is following nationalism to balance out between kindness and cruelty.
Communism is too cruel; it must be corrected by the other. The Supreme
Being essentially uses such power to correct people; it is also the reason why
He creates a New World. He has promised and will keep it with His children.

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38. RELIGIOUS MARTYRS CEREMONY

All Saints-Day (Tous Saints) at Tây Ninh Holy See on the 21st day of the 9th
month Đinh Hợi year (03 November 1947)

At 8 o’clock, the Grand Ceremony to the Supreme Being started; all
Dignitaries, Sub-dignitaries, male and female Disciples as well as many French
officials attended the ceremony to pray for the souls of Religious Martyrs.
After the ceremony, His Holiness Hộ Pháp delivered His sermon.

Today is the Religious Martyrs’ Day (All Saints’ Day) of Christianity, i.e. the
Way of the Saints. We know that all nations have an ultimate truth, i.e. they
can never rise above religions/ the Tao. This is a bright example for all the
children of the Supreme Being. No matter how turbulent life is, mankind will
never give up on religion, because spiritual power is the same everywhere.
However civilized they are, they cannot forgo religion.

We see that France is not an irreligious country; neither is the entire Europe.
The hard fact can be found at the Lourdres church in Vichy. No true religion
has ever forced disciples to endure harsh physical challenge. However,
because of their love and faith in the Supreme Being, they walk 10km on their
knees to pray to Him. We thought such deed does not exist, but it already does
in France. It is even more so during the Grand Ceremony. We all know that
European do not go without shoes, and there is no more serious punishment
than forcing them to go on bare foot. During each Grand Ceremony, they go
without shoes and carry the picture of Jesus for 10 thousand kilometers. From
these pieces of evidence, we see that no nation can give up on religion.

Today, the French government, the Southern government and our
congregation hold the Requiem Ceremony for mankind. On earth, mankind
divides themselves into races, families, lineages, appearance and skin color.
Our spirits do not have such discrimination like gender or race; after leaving
our body, we will unite with the eternal Holy Body of the Supreme Being.
Unfortunately, only after leaving their body do many souls realize that fighting
in this world is unreasonable and miserable; when they return to the Eternal
Realm, they will feel deep regret.

France and Europe understand that noble religious philosophy. My friends, do
not disregard these words. They have understood that but our people have
not. Once those soldiers go to the first heavenly realm or the Yin realm, they
will regret, blame themselves and cry in each other’s arms, because there is no

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animosity in those realms. Due to the physical body, people on earth are
mistaken. People have probably understood that spiritual secret, so they have
shown regret and gathered to preserve their country’s spiritual nobility and
lofty love for each other.
Justice in this world is to reap the fruit of the tree we plant. It is the same in
the Eternal Realm. My brothers and sisters, do not think that death is the end
of it all. As we can reap the fruit from our trees, wouldn’t divine justice be
meaningless if death were the end? They will enjoy it with spiritual nobility;
otherwise, divine justice would be futile. If nations blend together our
spiritual blood, their seed will yield fruit of happiness for all mankind on this
planet.

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39. NATIONAL FAITH

Holy See, the 30th day of the 9th month Đinh Hợi year [1947]

Dear Divine Dignitaries, Sub-dignitaries and the young male and female ones.
Today, as the Cao Đài religion has reached its true and honourable form, I will
now refer to it as a National Faith in this sermon. At the beginning, the
Supreme Being preached religious philosophies to awaken the ambiguous so
that they knew which school to build, which approach to take, and which path
to talk. Those points suit very well the current mentality of our Nation.

When the Supreme Being first wrote the words National Faith, I was in the
dark. Because of these words, Phạm Công Tắc died at the age of 35 after
sacrificing himself for the pursuit of its realization. Alas! The meaning of
National Faith dawned on me after much exploration. It starts with the love
for our race and our country; I have pursued it through life-and-death
situations since that young age. Since I found the Tao at the age of 35, my mind
has been craving for it. How come the Supreme Being knew that void and
filled it for me? At first, I doubted if a Divine Being knew my dream, craving
and exploration, and if that Being was deceiving me. How unfortunate! How
regretful I am now about that lack of faith. What have I seen in the past 15
years? The world says that Vietnam does not have religion. How strange! Let
us ask ourselves if it is true. Well, it is; we have so many religions that it turns
out we do not have any. All those religions are borrowed and begotten from
other people.

We know well that the Vietnamese race was born on China land, so we are not
afraid to say that we are Chinese people. We look just like the Chinese people.
Our country land is not here, but in Bắc Tam Tinh (北谭静省Běi tánjìng
shěng), i.e. Guangdong (广东), Jiangxi (江西), Yúnnán (云南), and Tonkin (東
京)which I now Hà Nội and Hải Nam. Those are our original fatherland.

I have sought if Confucianism was part of our tradition or had already existed
before our tradition. We see that the Vietnamese race are descendants of the
Lu state (魯國) where Confucianism came into being. As the Lu people
established Confucianism, we are surely master of the tradition, i.e. it belongs
to us. With this, we have Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism – the three
religions which are recognized as major ones by the world. All races and
nations acknowledge their origin from the East. Moreover, Shintoism, which
came from Phù Tang or Japan and spread to China and then our country, has

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also had influence on us. Thanks to this, Confucianism developed into a
slightly different form with particular beliefs different from Shintoism. The
evidence is that we are worshiping the deities in villages. Additionally, the
Vietnamese people’s belief in religions is strong and sincere. In the 19th
century, Christianity was spread to our country and started a fervent
competition to dominate all other religions. Anyone that read the Phúc Sự
newspaper in 1937 knows it clearly. I have explained the fact that Vietnam has
no religion due to having too many religions.

There were times our beloved friends who cared about the future of our
nation defended and expanded our freedom. It is frustrating to learn that
there were opponents. I cannot remember which year our proponents in the
House of Commons were met with opposition. Because Vietnam did not have
religion, it was very hard for us to establish politics. For that reason, we could
not deny and refute the accusation. Therefore, I felt sorrow and miserable,
trying to find if we had religion. Unfortunately, there were in front of us all
sorts of psychic, medium, magic doer, etc. who stain our religious beliefs. I was
frustrated. Suddenly, the Supreme Being came; because we loved poetry,
Divine Beings from the Diêu Trì Realm mesmerized us with their fantastic
poems. How fortunate! If they had not been (good) poets, we would not have
been convinced so easily. Due to our love for poetry, He tried to teach us with
poems. At first, the Supreme Being made friends with us, then revealed His
real name and asked me to give up secular life in order to follow Him and
establish the Faith. I was still irreligious then, because the Vietnamese race
had a lot of mixed religious beliefs. There was neither foundation nor basics;
we literally did not have religion. I replied to the Supreme Being, but on
reflection I am very afraid of it. If He had not been the Great Merciful Father, I
would have sinned tremendously. “Dear Master, if you ask me to be Laozi or
Jesus, I will not be able to. Neither can I be Sakyamuni. I can only be Phạm
Công Tắc. Despite my incapacity and irreligiousness, I am determined to
follow you to the end. However, I will probably be of no use to you.” That
Being replied, “Tắc, what do you think if I use your qualities and virtues to
build the Faith?” I immediately answered, “If so…” He immediately said, “I
come to establish for Vietnam a National Faith.” Since hearing these words, I
have been floating on air like in a dream. It was what I had been dreaming of,
so I did not refuse. Alas! What was meant by National Faith? National refers to
our country, so it means the beliefs of our people will form the National Faith.
I vowed to follow the mission through to see it physiognomy, and thus have
pursued it till today. Its physiognomy has been revealed as the Cao Đài

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religion. Let us envision how it will become the National Faith. He gave us a
poem which perhaps no one can understand thoroughly. Those who look at its
root do not see its top; those who look at its top do not see its root. The
meaning is truly beautiful; even the state parties at the moment are all taking
advantage of us.

From now, your race shall not divide into three: i.e. we will not divide into
Three Religions, rather than three regions.

I unite you under one roof: i.e. The Master holds the power to unite the Three
religions; if we interpret it as the South, Central and North, it will be shallow.

All South, North, and then abroad: i.e. The National Faith does not only belong
to our nation, but also to all mankind. After the Faith is fully established in the
South and North, we will bring it abroad to become a global faith.

The True Faith shall have only one Master as Me: He will unite into one all The
Three Religions and religious beliefs across the five continents. With all
human religious belief in Him, the Supreme Being is the Emperor of the
universe, of the True Faith in this Southern country. He leads the spirit of
humanity, and thus has the power to establish a National Faith. He comes to
create a common cause for this nation. What does He choose for His Body? He
chooses all living beings, i.e. the Mother Buddha. The spirit comes from the
Supreme Being, while the form from the Mother Buddha. The mind comes
from the Father, while the body from the Mother. All can see that when we
enter the Holy See of the Great Merciful Father, there are different ranks, titles
and vestments. However, in the Temple of the Mother Buddha, it is all white;
nobody is more important than anybody is. If we are knowledgeable, we can
see the sublimity in the dharma of the Supreme Being. The Supreme Being
says that He particularly unifies all the virtue and intellectuality of mankind
on this National Faith which has hierarchy, structure, and different levels of
nobility. Regarding the physical, all life is equal before Him; all live and die as
the same rank so that the National Faith will create universal fraternity and
the future for humanity. We shall have high authority and nobility. As such, all
His Holy Body, including the Sacerdotal Council, Divine Dignitaries, and all
Disciples, who shoulder the Divine mission and duties trusted to us by the
Supreme Being, must have dignity, order and rank. He means further that
when we take these vestments off and walk out of the Holy See, we are all
brothers and sisters with each other. Nobody is more or less important than
anybody; all will love each other since we are all children of the same Mother.
It is the same for both male and female. When all mankind on earth

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understands this noble meaning, The Cao Đài religion will show its true
physiognomy.

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40. OUR DUTY TO THE MOTHER BUDDHA

The 1st day of the 10th month Đinh Hợi year [1947]

I will continue to preach about the previous topic because many sisters do not
really understand it. I will ask questions and expect you to answer correctly
and eloquently.

We have the Mother Buddha who holds the power to create our physical body.
The Supreme Being is the Father of our spirit who bestows on us the divinity;
the Mother Buddha is the Mother of our form who bestows on us our energy;
our earthly parents follow the order of the Mother Buddha to give birth to our
physical body. The power to govern our bodies belongs to the Mother. The
Mother Buddha has the Motherly nature. I would like to attest that the Mother
Buddha has the same nature with our Mother on earth, but with more love,
care and protection.

When we enter the Court of the Supreme Being, i.e. the Nine Heavenly Planes,
there are hierarchy and ranks of authority. Therefore, we have to wear Holy
Vestments before Him. Meanwhile, in the Temple of the Mother Buddha, we
all dress in white. Even the Pope or the Hộ Pháp has to leave their vestments
outside. Why is that? It is nothing strange if we understand the nature of a
Mother. In a family, if a child has much power or great title like a judge, a
counsellor or prime minister, and if he enters the house as a prime minister,
his mother will not like it or even feel sad. He can use his power with
somebody else, but not his family. His power shall only be exercised in the
outer world, but not with his mother. People of any rank are still children of
their mother. Have you sisters understood this? What does this lesson teach
us? Only when we truly understand this sublime philosophy will the Cao Đài
religion have a future. I have preached about the Thập Nhị Thời Quân (the
Twelve Zodiacal Lords), the Thượng Sanh (the Head of the Temporal), the
Thượng Phẩm (the Head of the Spiritual) and the Hộ Pháp or Ngự Mã Quân
(the Ambassador of the Supreme Being. The Mother Buddha was afraid that
the Supreme Being would not succeed in establishing His religion and would
have to reincarnate. So She had the Thập Nhị Thời Quân descend/ reincarnate.
Despite their noble title, they are the same as others before the Mother
Buddha. The more honourable and important Her children are, the more
worried She is that their importance will breed arrogance and may harm their
endless future. All should understand this philosophy to discipline yourself.
Now, I would like to conclude as follows: When we enter Her door, everybody
shall have the same life and death, love each other like a family; do not

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discriminate by hierarchy or you will damage the model She has always
wished for. This is the same for both male and female. The ranks in the Nine
Heavenly Planes are not applicable here. Even if you have affection for the
other organization/ realm, you must keep in mind your Mother and act
properly as Her children. As brothers and sisters, we have to treat each other
like a family. That is a religious rule.

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41. PREACHING METHODS

The 10th day of the 10th month Đinh Hợi year [1947] at the Divine Alliance
Palace

The rhetoric course of the Supreme Being is very simple. Whether it is French
or Vietnamese, the methods are the same; both speech and writing should
follow the rules of a poem. The composition should be divided into segments:

 Subject for outlining
 Development for points of argument
 Denouement for the results
 Conclusion for ending

A speech must strictly follow prosody and standards like a piece of writing. It
must follow certain rules or there is no way out. In Religions, this rule is very
important. When Christianity first appeared, the twelve Apostles studied at
the house of Saint Mary with the help of descending spirits. One day, Jesus
Christ said, “Your mouth is my mouth; the virtuous words you say are from
me. You shall spread the New Testament.” All the twelve Apostles were not
well educated, but thanks to the descending spirits, they became wise.

Before learning about Religions, I did not believe in it. At the Gò Kén pagoda,
in front of thousands of people, I went up to the stage and paced around it for
16 times. Whenever I looked up and saw the crowd, I was stricken by stage
fright. Then, I became like drunk and saw nobody. I was so drunk/ absorbed
that I did not know what I was saying. Not until I came off the stage and
received compliments from the audience did I become aware of it. Even
though I had practiced a lot before that. The Supreme Being taught me and
brother Cao Thượng Phẩm; when one preached, the other would listen.
Brother Cao Thượng Phẩm was arrogant, so I had to try. But I was still
stricken by stage fright.

You brothers and sisters must practice to develop skill and confidence. In
order to spread the Faith, we have to preach. The sermons are wordless
scriptures; writing books is not as effective as preaching. It takes prosody to
preach. Other people may feel it daunting, but Vietnamese people already
have a four-thousand-year civilization as the foundation. There are three
devices – Phú (enrich), Tỉ (provide examples), Hứng (improvise). Phú means
that we read and understand books, and quote from them to provide clear
explanation. Tỉ means that we use past events to explore the current ones, and

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use history to explain the present. Hứng means that we go up the pulpit and
improvise. They are supported by these three resources – Scriptures, Classics
and Rules. In order to Phú, we have to remember the scriptures. In order to Tỉ,
we have to provide examples from the classics to compare. Hứng must not
transgress the rules, distort the truth or speak nonsense. We must remember
the three devices and then the three resources. A poem is enough for a
sermon; to the Supreme Being, nothing is difficult. For example:
“Yến Tử Hà in his dire situation,
Still walked in his torn shoes to Quang Trung.
Now you are yet conversant with the Tao,
Just watch and follow My steps.”
He provided reference to before citing the classic story like in the first two
sentences. Why did Yến Tử Hà walk in his torn shoes to Quang Trung? Yến Tử
Hà is a subject of the Han dynasty which lost its sovereignty and sought help
to revenge the insult. Sở Bá King despised the Han people and did not allow
them into the state system, so Yến suffered. He was poor but still walked in his
torn shoes to Quang Trung to find Hớn Bái Công. The latter two sentences
mean we just have to follow the Master; if we walk His footsteps we will never
get lost. Yến was maltreated, the Han country occupied. Trương Tử Phòng was
also a Han subject at that time. What classic tale did the Supreme Being use?
Our country is also lost like Han; Yến worked for Hớn to take revenge of Han.
The Supreme Being meant that if we would like to take revenge for our
country, we should act like Yến walking to Quang Trung; if we want to keep
our country, we should follow the Master.
Let us conduct an experiment. If you brothers suggest a topic, I will speak
about it like the following poem:
“Investiture of Gods is not fiction,
Who has ever met Lão Tô mid-sea.”
Do not think that the Investiture of Gods is an invented story. Lão Tô is Tô
Đông Pha (Su Dongpo) who is the ancestor of Japanese people. Who has ever
met him, but if someone has that means he exists.
“I rely on this world to awaken you”

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The world is now cruel and immoral so that we will be awakened.
“Like I borrow the pen of Hồ.”
Đổng Hồ undertook to write about the history of Vương Kiệt victory. Despite
seeing Vương Kiệt killed, he was not afraid. He took on the cause like the
Master is doing now. Mankind is becoming cruel; He uses such cruelty to
awaken living beings. As Đổng Hồ was not afraid of death, the Master will
triumph in establishing the authority for His children. There was a talented
Qin general who refused to fight in the resistance war. Đổng Hồ wrote that he
is to blame for the loss of his country. Why is that? His idleness sapped the
morale of the army, so it was his fault. This speech has featured all the devices
and resources.

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42. HIS HOLINESS QUYỀN GIÁO TÔNG’S DAY

8 a.m., the 13th day of the 10th month Đinh Hợi year [1947] at the tomb of His
Holiness Quyền Giáo Tông [Interim Pope]

Today is His Holiness Quyền Giáo Tông’s (Thượng Trung Nhựt) Day. It is a
very important and meaningful day to the Cửu Trùng Đài (the Nine Divine
Planes, the Executive Body). As a close friend, I can definitely say that I know
clearly the value of Thương Trung Nhựt.

Although the Papal position of the Cao Đài Religion belongs to His Holiness Li
who preserves our holiness and reconcile the temporal and the spiritual. At
the same time, Thượng Trung Nhựt designated our positions on earth. In this
sense, Thượng Trung Nhựt created the Papal position for the Cao Đài Religion
like Saint Pierre built the papacy in Rome.

Alas! The day the Supreme Being suddenly came; in this 20th century when
mankind are suffering both physically and mentally. When He revealed His
name, we were all surprised, especially because we were treading a gloomy
path. Thượng Trung Nhựt was the most senior then. Due to suspicion, one of
us asked if it was possible. As if we were walking in a tunnel looking for light;
we were still in the dark. Fortunately, He fulfilled the destiny of guiding us out
of the dark tunnel; His enlightened eyes led us on the path of the Tao.

When we asked if it was possible, He replied that it was very. Because the
world was drowning in sufferings, it is not strange that that Being came. We
see that in a miserable family if the father is still alive, he will show his
profound love for His children. He asserted, “That Being who has come in this
age is truly the Supreme Being.” Except for the Supreme Being, no one can
endure the sufferings.

Thanks to His sincerity, His aspiration touched the Eternal Realm and moved
all Angels, Saints, Immortals and Buddhas. Fortunately, the Supreme Being
has come to establish the National Faith for Vietnam; there is no greater
honour for our nation. If the Cao Đài religion later becomes a model for a
baronial civilization, I am sure that such civilization originates from the mind
of Thượng Trung Nhựt. Oh, how meritorious He is! We all remember that at
the beginning when people’s minds were still disoriented amid their struggles
for life, especially the Vietnamese people who were secretly planning their
liberation from slavery. Who would believe in what we said when they
thought it was vague, and when they were disoriented. Only those, who were

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on the same boat, shared His thoughts and had enough intellectuality to
understand His lofty goals, followed Him. Amid the disorientation, even these
people betrayed Him, let alone the Vietnamese people in general. He had faith
in and was determined to form the National Faith for the Vietnamese people,
but these very people became His enemy. Their hostility caused Him to suffer
and shed tears many times throughout the rest of His life.
I am sure that throughout our life we will not be able to find anyone that loves
their own people so passionately like Thượng Trung Nhựt; I have never seen a
second person. If it had not been for His endless love, He would not have
renounced His career to build up the Faith for the nation. The more profound
this great cause is, the longer the people will enjoy its fruit; the more profound
the more precious it is. Its value will keep rising, and people will know that
Thượng Trung Nhựt’s loving heart gave life to a steadfast national soul.
All Vietnamese people have to bow to and follow such lofty will. There is no
sword which can destroy the work He has accomplished for the Vietnam race.

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43. PHYSICAL SUFFERING RELIEF

Holy See, the 13th day of the 10th month Đinh Hợi year [1947] - Commemoration
of the Interim Pope.

Once again, the Three Treasures offering is the key part of the ceremony. Each
offering is raised up so we know its meaning and pray to the Supreme Being.
When it is lifted, we bow and offer the Treasure.

The secret dharma is very important: Flower is the physical (body) and
Flower offering is the offering of our body to the Supreme Being as a sacrifice;
Wine offering is the offering of our mind and brain; Tea offering is to fully
dedicate our soul to the Supreme Being. We are the animal body which the
ceremony chief brings to the Supreme Being in heaven as a Ceremonial
offering.

Today is the Commemoration of His Holiness Quyền Giáo Tông (the Interim
Pope), who is our lofty Dignitary. I will preach about the two words Suffering
Relief. By the way, I would like to declare to the entire Sacerdotal Council, i.e.
the Holy Body of the Supreme Being, and all His children that He (the Pope) is
a noble and highly respected soul; although His body has disintegrated, His
divine conscience will exist for eternity without decay. The coming of the
Supreme Being surprised me; I sought its meaning for several years before I
really understood the two words ‘suffering relief’ of the Supreme Being.

How strange! His Holiness Cao Thượng Phẩm and His Holiness Quyền Giáo
Tông knew the Supreme Being’s feelings when He mentioned the two words
‘suffering relief’. Relief means help; complete relief implies adequate power to
make the decision. Suffering means pain spiritually and physically. Only when
we understand people do we have compassion and can assume religious
authority; so that we will save human beings. Our love for each other will fuel
our love for all mankind.

Alas! Upon hearing the words ‘suffering relief’, anyone that has endured
spiritual pains and sufferings will yearn for it like it is essential. If someone
brings us a bowl of rice when we are hungry, its smell carries a profound
meaning.

Alas! As the two words ‘suffering relief’ implies, the Faith will offer its Holy
Body to people in this Southern country, and then the entire world. Mankind
has not evolved into civilization; they are still in slavery. The weak, cruel,
crude, and ignorant Vietnamese race has falling into distress like the

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aboriginals being caught for sale in the past. I have observed this situation in
human history in Asia; the same with Europe. Slavery trade was a particular
feature of the Roman Empire; they considered slaves less than animals. The
owner had the full right to kill his slaves like animals. Now the Roman
authorities must abolish slavery. Thus, slavery consisted in the purchase of
impoverished people and turning them into servants. After Maurice suddenly
came to confront the Roman Emperor and relieve such misery, people
regarded him as the Supreme Being incarnate who liberated and saved human
beings from misery. In Asia, China in particular united different nations into
one, although it was not lofty and entirely loving. It was possible because in
the primeval past they subdued less civilized races to serve them. Our race
could not bear it; we opposed them and sought ways to relieve the suffering.
Now the suffering has reached its limits. We are all familiar with it; if we
cannot accomplish anything, we have to submit ourselves to others in poverty
and humility.

It is not strange that when we aim for the extraordinary, we are alone with no
support. It is sad to see the lonely being oppressed. The oppression binds
them in slavery psychologically. Amid slavery, we have too often seen
situations where brothers under the same roof and friends in mutual poverty
and suffering are oppressed indirectly. As everyone is slave, nobody is higher
in authority, either temporally or spiritually.

The Gautama Buddha taught that birth, aging, sickness and death are the four
sufferings of mankind; the entire world have been racking their brains to
eliminate those sufferings so that mankind will live in satisfaction. Birth is
followed by aging; we see that as countries become more civilized and
developed, they build retirement homes for old people. No country on earth
does not support the elderly. Regarding sickness, the more patients, the more
hospitals there are to restore their well-being. If they did not achieve their
goals, people would rebel. Regarding death, civilized societies are seeking
ways to mitigate the accompanying pains and to gather families and the
nation together as a civilization.

How can we mitigate the four sufferings? We must focus on correcting and
alleviate mental suffering. Where does physical suffering come from? It comes
from our desire to be happier than others. There is no power which decides
our fate; it depends on our own decisions because mankind knows it is more
lofty than other living beings. Since the material created on earth by the
Supreme Being is not enough to secure His children’s life, there are rich and

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poor, smart and ignorant people. Some consider it injustice, so where does the
injustice come from? It comes from lack of virtue. How can we eliminate the
suffering? Currently on earth what have the key opinion leaders done to win
people’s hearts and define politics? They have had only a loving heart and
shown that love to the world. They use justice and love to save people who
entrust their life to the leaders for their government. Who can be sure that
such loving hearts exist? I would like to pose this question. It takes many
families, who sincerely and adequately show their love, to ‘sow’ the love into
the hearts of all the people of a nation and to appeal for their mutual love and
existence. Any country that is lucky to have a wise governor reach that goal
will enjoy boundless familial happiness. Nations as well as societies only care
about themselves, but not others. They are killing each other. Therefore, the
Cao Đài religion has come into being. Why does the Cao Đài religion exist?
When a family suffers, the father bears suffering with his children. In a
country, if the people suffer, the governor or king or president assumes their
authority to seek way to relieve their suffering.
Beyond the boundary of nation and society, who can hold the power to fulfill
such duty? All nations are suffering; who has the duty to guide them away
from it? Except for the Supreme Being, no one else can govern this earth. In a
family, the father shares suffering with his children, while across nations and
peoples on earth no one has shared their suffering. The Supreme Being comes
to cry out for the love of all mankind so that we regard each other as brothers,
love, protect, support and respect each other. He sows love and harmony into
human minds by saying, “I am your Father who comes to make Myself known to
you, so that you know yourselves. Once you brothers love each other, it means
your Father has saved you from suffering spiritually and physically.”

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44. MENTAL SUFFERING RELIEF

Holy See, the 15th day of the 10th month Đinh Hợi year [1947]

Yesterday, I preached about the Supreme Being’s method for relieving
physical suffering. Today, I will continue to preach about the Supreme Being’s
method for relieving mental suffering.

Human mental suffering is much more intense and dangerous than physical
suffering. Many people cannot bear mental suffering to the point that they
have to commit suicide. They think that their suffering can be ended by
destroying their body; that is the reason for their suicide. They are wrong!
Even though their body is destroyed, their mental or mental suffering cannot
be alleviated; their soul still suffers. They think that suicide can relieve them
from physical suffering, but on the contrary their mental suffering still
remains with them in the Eternal Realm; it is even more intense and
frightening. Therefore, if the worldly suffering is not alleviated, it will increase
manifold after death.

Why is there mental suffering? Let us muster all our intellectuality to examine
the root of it. We see that in life there are countless ranks of human dignity/
human typologies; if we do the math to calculate the number of ranks/
typologies, it will have no limit. So many men so many minds; why is that? If
we understand the truth of the Tao, it is due to the level of evolution of souls.
It is not our decision which determines our rank/ typology; it is the result of
our spiritual evolution and is determined by the Supreme Being. There is no
need to discuss this truth because our spirit and intelligence give rise to our
various manners, activities and all. For this reason, the religious doctrine of
the Supreme Being has explained clearly that the entire sea of suffering
teaches us good lessons so that our spirits evolve to the ultimate level of the
Supreme Being among living beings.

What does our physical body see? We see that there is a world of injustice. For
those who do not know the Tao, it is reasonable for them to blame it on the
Creation mechanism. On earth, everyone is human like everyone else; why are
there the talented and the incapable, the smart and the stupid, the kind and
the cruel? The daily struggles are related to the particular divide in individual
mentality. For example, the students are friends with each other, but one is
stupid while the other is smart. He is so stupid that he drops out of school to
be a humble person. The smart one achieves high status, becomes a governor
to shape the fate of the people, correct the customs and lead people. Why is

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there such a strange divide? All students study hard but why cannot they all
study well? They compete with each other but some cannot keep up; so they
suffer mentally. That is one reason.

When we grow up and observe, we learn that good skills and talents help
secure family living. Others with clever skills make a lot of profit and live a
happy life. We want to learn but cannot; all our efforts turn out futile. It is
because we are not as smart. Being ashamed of ourselves, we suffer
spiritually. Others can but cannot we? Others gain statuses and power, while
we toil and moil for them despite our similar level of knowledge. We get
frustrated wondering why others are like that and we are like this. We are
frustrated by injustice; it is spiritual mentally, i.e. spiritually.

Furthermore, some traders do business just like other people with the same
methods. Why do they gain a lot of profit to build magnificent palaces and
bring wealth and honour to their family? Meanwhile, we fail and lose all
money in our trading activities. Being utterly irritated, we suffer spiritually.

People are looking for treatments for those injustices. Some follow the
spiritual path for ages, waiting for those who can relieve their mental
suffering; but they have not found one yet. In our physical body, we have to
endure a life of suffering; our mind reckons why we are talented and work
harder than others but keep failing. People call it misfortune. Amid the
sadness and frustration, we console ourselves with a saying, “Talent and fate
are opposite to each other,” but do not know why we have to endure such
suffering.

For the sufferings I have preached about, people keep finding treatments but
cannot; thus, no one is satisfied with their life. The poor, the rich, the stupid,
and the smart - they find ways to comfort themselves. There are this poor
husband and wife who see that others are rich while they are poor. They wear
torn clothes, live from hand to mouth, and suffer. Not knowing why people are
rich, they cry their eyes out and then comfort each other. They keep sing
songs for their souls:

“Rich people wear silk shirts and silk pants,

In poverty, we cut wood and dig coal.

Thou, please do not whine,

Paying off our debt, I will buy silk for thee.”

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After the song, the wife’s tears subside, and the husband feels funny.

As a smart person, when Kongming aimed to burn Sima Yi to preserve the Liu
dynasty, he was afraid of being defeated by Sima Yi one day. In the mid of the
fire, rain came down and saved Sima Yi. Frustrated, he looked up and cried,
“Man proposes, God disposes. God’s will is natural, truly so.” Without this
consolation, he would probably have gone mad.

Hồ Địch saw Nhạc Phi ruthlessly killed by Tần Cối due to his stupid loyalty.
When hearing that Tibet invaded the Song, he watched and waited for the
result, esp. the karmic punishment of the Song. But Heaven plan was for the
Song not to lose, and the for the Tibet to retreat. Out of frustration, he
lamented that, “Heaven and earth are partial, the Divine is unjust;” it is a crude
solace.

When mankind searches for means of consolation, it is as hard as looking for
wind in the cloud. If we knock the door of Confucius, “do you have any
treatment to ease my mental suffering?”, He replies, “unless you adopt the
method of world transformation, the result will not the satisfactory even with
the attainment of the Doctrine of the Mean.” If we knock on the door of the
Gautama Buddha, “Do you have any treatment to relieve my mental
suffering?”, He presents the doctrine of the truth of the Four Sufferings, i.e.
birth, aging, illness and death. By examining ourselves, we find that we do not
want to be born, but why we are born into such misery; I do not want to live,
because living is the root of the Four Sufferings. Such sufferings are not of our
own making, but are caused by someone; our souls remain troubled. With our
question unanswered by the Buddha, we knock on the door of Laozi, “Your
Holiness, is there any treatment to console my soul?” He tells us to keep virtue
as the basics, liberate ourselves from secular attachments, and go to the
mountains to leave behind our life of karma; we will find freedom in the
solitude and leisure. Otherwise, we will not escape from suffering. We listen
and go to the mountains, but it is grueling each time we bring rice up there.
When we are hungry, we go down and lose our will; thus, the method does not
work. If we knock on the door of Jesus de Nazareth, “my messiah, do you have
any treatment for my mental suffering?”, He replies, “if you insist that you are
the children of the Jehovah, i.e. the Supreme Being, you have to do what He
tells you to in order to comfort your souls.” Regarding how to be children of
the Supreme Being, many can talk about it but cannot do it, like a well-written
play for which there is no good actor. No one denies that there are people who
find consolation thanks to their abiding faith, while most turn complete away

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from the Supreme Being. Further disheartened, they cannot find anyone else
for help.
Now how does the Supreme Being comfort human souls in the 20th century?
Coming to His children, He asserts that if His children, i.e. His Holy Body, fails
to establish the Faith, He will reincarnate. What is so important? He comes to
earth to establish a religion; since the creation of heaven and earth, no
institution is formed without His hand. His Ngự Mã Quân (Ambassador) is
horrified, because every time He reincarnates He has to bear all sorts of
physical and spiritual pains. He particularly wants His sufferings to be a
medium to liberate all mankind. Fearing that He will suffer, His Ngự Mã Quân
reincarnates to establish the religion for Him. Why is that? Frankly, no one has
as much power as an embracing mother or a loving father. When the child
feels pain and cries, the mother’s embrace will immediately keep him silent
and the father’s kiss will ease his pain and sadness.
The Supreme Being orders the Religious Founders to establish religions on
His behalf. On account of His name and order, They came to teach His children.
No one has alleviated all the sufferings of mankind; the mass/ amount of
suffering has accumulated enormously since the presence of mankind. He
came and embraced mankind in His hand, consoling that our mental
sufferings are of our own making, not His; they are the result of our mutual
infliction. In order to relieve the sufferings, there is no other way than to
abolish all spiritual ranks, unite mankind, regard each other as brothers of the
same basics and origin. This is so that we will share joy and sorrow, respect
each other, avoid oppression, mental bullying, and wealth discrimination. As a
spiritual rule, all mankind must be equal in dignity and power.
When mankind respects and regards each other brothers irrespective of their
wealth, it will not be hard to find means of suffering relief. If we listen and
obey the Master’s words, the suffering will automatically be eliminated. If we
still suffer, let us beat our breast and say, “The sufferings are of our own
making; they are not the punishment of the Supreme Being.” The Master comes
to correct human mentality so we will top fighting and destroying each other.
When there is no more chaos, the sufferings will be annihilated. It is nothing
strange. Such is His mechanism of suffering relief.

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45. UNIVERSAL FRATERNITY
Holy See, the 1st day of the 11th month Đinh Hợi year [1947]
Today, I will preach about universal fraternity. Before preaching about this
topic, I would like to preach about idealism and materialism. Unless we
understand these doctrines, we will not understand universal fraternity. I
have preached about the Three Treasures, i.e. the three components of human
being, including 1-Matter, 2-Qi/ Energy, and 3-Spirit.
What is Matter? It is the visible human being, i.e. our body.
What is Qi/ Energy? It is our mind.
What is Spirit? It is our soul, which the Supreme Being calls ‘chơn linh’ (true
divinity).
The Three Treasures are related to each other, because all of them combine to
form human being while each has its own Visible Dharma. Now let us
differentiate between hem: Matter is Material, i.e. it is an animal, but is
different from others; in other words, our body is of the same rank with
animals. Qi/ Energy is the vital energy of our brain. Spirit is the true divinity
produced by the Supreme Being. The three components are connected to each
other with Qi as the intermediary. It is our mind which comes to earth
together with the true divinity to form our wisdom. On the contrary, if it does
not unify with the spirit, it will with the body, i.e. it becomes one with our
sense nature. What is sense nature? It is the primitive mind which exists like
animals’. For example, new–born animals know nothing but already look for
their mothers’ breasts to sustain their life. The law of life protection only
requires it to look for such to live. The Three Treasures are connected to the
entire universe; the Spirit is equivalent to the Buddha, i.e. the Supreme Being,
Qi to the dharma, and Matter to the sangha or living beings.
Therefore, materialism is prone to Matter, while idealism is related to theism,
i.e. to the Buddha and the Supreme Being. Often, religions invent all sorts of
names in their search for the Creator of all living beings who divides Himself
to create the divine light of human beings. He is the Father of our divine light
or the Father of all living beings. As a result, religions, especially Christianity,
say that human beings are Heavenly Angels being imprisoned; our spirit or
the Heavenly Angel is of the same nature with the Supreme Being. Carrying
this body, we are trapped in the material prison. Buddhism tells us that the
three treasures are no different than the rider and the horse. The horse is the

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‘kỵ vật’ (an animal that we ride) or Matter; the Dharma is the rein, and above
all the control device like mouthpiece and horseshoes to keep the horse on
our intended path, i.e. Matter; the rider is our true divinity, i.e. Spirit. Our
Spirit is created by the Supreme Being, and thus human beings have high
aspiration to become a little God even before any lofty attainment or before
having wisdom. We above all always want to become God. Why is that? It is
not hard to understand: A student who sees a mandarin enter his class is not
afraid of him but whispers to himself that you can become mandarin and so
can I; only when giving up my study and becoming a herdsman will it be
impossible for me. The Spirit knows that He wants to cultivate himself to
become Angel, Saint, Immortal, and Buddha. He can even become the Supreme
Being, because He creates the position for His children, those who are capable
of what He does. Consequently, we know that we are God incarnate before
making any achievement. There is a joke that when His Holiness Trạng Trình,
i.e. Nguyễn Bỉnh Khiêm, was still a young student, the District Mandarin
visited His school. Because the Mandarin heard that He was a reputed genius
but saw that He was small, short, and dragging his baggy clothes on the
ground in a funny manner, he made fun of Him. The Mandarin posed a poetic
challenge as follows, “Hey student, the little student, He who wears baggy
clothes is the child of a student.” He (Trạng Trình) immediately replied, “The
Mandarin is one of rudeness, His crude speech renders him an unrespectable
mandarin.” He immediately replied in an impartial manner with
determination not to lose.

Idealism gives birth to divine talent, while materialism to secular talent. I will
preach about them in a separate sermon later on. So far I have finished the
opening speech; please remember and listen next to universal fraternity.

Universal fraternity is to unite into one type/ rank. Where does universal
fraternity originate from? I am sure no one will be able to explain what
univeral fraternity is. It is to be born equal, i.e. as human beings. Who is born
equal with us is our friend and brother. As living beings are blessed with the
limitless power of the Supreme Being to be born equal into the world, all
matters, insects, plants, animals and humans are living beings or born equal as
friends. Being born equal, we have to regard each other as brothers created by
the Supreme Being. Buddhism forbids killing because living beings are our
friends.

So what does Univeral Fraternity mean? It means we are born equal as friends
and regard each other equal in origin. Why does the doctrine of universal

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