Sermons of His Holiness Ho Phap - Vol II

to do so, someone has to speak up. They wait for us to speak up, but
we do not. As a result, we have been fighting irrationally for the past
two years. On the contrary, Bần Đạo has come in person, and seen
people acknowledge and support our demand that France return
independence and unity to Vietnam.

How strange! The thorny path became easy. Now, the seemingly
easy path turns thorny; i.e. our Bảo Đại king hesitates to make
decision. His hesitation causes difficulty and obstacle for us; it is
quite amusing. Anyway, the Supreme Being has decided that it will
happen according to His Holy will; it will not happen otherwise.

Bần Đạo have often preached that all individuals, families, countries,
societies and mankind on this earth are subject to the law of karma
of the political tribunal and the Ngọc Hư Cung (the Court of God), i.e.
the tribunal of the three religions, who are governing over the
Universe in a very strict and solemn way. Their power is limitless
and incomparable. Above such power is that of the Buddhas in the
Cực Lạc Thế Giới (the Paradise of Extreme Joy) who control karma.
Even the Supreme Being cannot change their decision.

We see that now the entire Vietnam nation are writhing in the
misery of mutual killing. If we examine from a high level, we see that
since the Đinh, Lê, Lý, Trần and Lê dynasties the Vietnamese race
have incurred countless bad karma. Judging by the history of
Vietnam-China, we can foretell the later events of Tây Sơn and Mã
Nguỵ. As we borrow, we have to pay back. The current drama is the
result of our ancestors' drama. It is happening just like how the
country destroyed Tây Sơn. The karma was already created; who
can we blame, be sad about or lament to? We started it; now we
have to bear it. Even the Divine Cause which is started by the

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Supreme Being Himself on earth has to bear its impact and is
jeopardized.
Unless Bần Đạo maintain the Codes strictly, the competition for
power and position will be inevitable in this Religion. Fortunately,
Bần Đạo have enough power to steer the course of the karma, and
help the Holy Body of the Supreme Being avoid being stained by
karma as well as being punished by Divine Law. Later on, we will see
that the secular and religious history are just like image and
shadow; they are just like each other and cannot be otherwise.

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18. THE NATIONAL FAITH NOW BECOMES THE GREAT FAITH –
THE VIETNAM CUSTOM ONE DAY WILL BECOME MANKIND'S
CUSTOM

Holy See, Night of the 1st day of the 4th month Mậu Tý year (1948)

Today, Bần Đạo will preach about an essential matter which will
stretch beyond one session and will go on for several nights. After
each praying session, there is very little time for preaching; Bần Đạo
have to shorten the sermons because everyone is tired after the
rituals. Bần Đạo will reverse the order so the sermon will take place
before the rituals.

In the poem which the Supreme Being left for His Majesty Bảo Đại,
the most essential sentences for His Holy Faith are these two:

“Quốc Đạo kim triêu thành Đại Đạo

Nam phong thử nhựt biến Nhơn phong”

("The National Faith now becomes a Great Faith

The Vietnamese customs will one day become mankind's customs.")

From these sentences, we understand that the Supreme Being would
like to say to His Majesty Bảo Đại that His National Faith has now
become a Great Faith. The word 'Great Faith' encompasses the faith
of all mankind. In the second sentence, the word 'phong' does not
mean wind; it carries very deep meaning! 'Phong' means customs;
the Supreme Being means that His national customs will become
mankind's customs. We should examine and ponder if the Supreme
Being is overstating because of His love. If some religion would like
to criticize, they will say the Supreme Being is egoistic. If they have
faith, they may argue:

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The Supreme Being said so because of love. So let us ponder if our
National Faith will become the Faith of the entire world, and if our
custom can replace the custom of all mankind on this earth. We
should observe, ponder and envision if it is possible. It is possible,
and Bần Đạo strongly believe that it must be that way. What a pity! A
race who used to be dominated by China; despite being part of their
map, we had a history of 4,000 years of struggle. We maintained our
freedom and independence, and did not follow their orders. Our
country is like fabric, and China like a shirt; we have no reason to
refuse the spirit of such a courageous race. Where does their
strength come from? It comes from their national religious spirit.
We are under the most important influence of two religions: China
which receives teachings from India teaches us how to cultivate
ourselves to be perfectly good and perfectly humane; Buddhism
from India guides our self-cultivation to reach great mercy and great
compassion. The two spirits combine to form a Religion so as to
protect our national spirit.

The Supreme Being once said to the French: "For a long time, the
race has only known slavery, but not sovereignty. Therefore, I come to
compensate for that injustice." Religions have taught us to be
perfectly good and humane, and have great mercy and compassion
in spirit; do we have to follow them today? I am sure that Holy
Water has been longed for by mankind so as to preserve their life;
without it, mankind will end in self-destruction.

Why self-destruction? We have seen a chaotic civilization which
thrives on strong materialism. As long as mankind still chases after
materialism, this earth will not have peace; because they only
compete for material gain, rather than live together in sincerity.
How powerful Christianity used to be, but now they have to cede to

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global power (of materialism). The Religion which is meant to
replace (Christianity's) power is not on a certain course to change
the future. Materialism, on the other hand, will lead to irredeemable
dead end. Only the Supreme Being comes to save mankind.
Fortunately, our ancestors have left us a drug cabinet which can be
used today to save human spirit in the entire world. The divine
cabinet will provide life-saving treatment, i.e. a method to save us
from sufferings. As we do not have the power to save the world, we
have to use that eternal remedy to preserve human life.

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19. CONTINUED EXPLANATION OF THE TWO SENTENCES: "THE
NATIONAL FAITH BECOMES…"

Holy See, Night of 5th day of the 4th month Mậu Tý year (1948)

Today, Bần Đạo will continue explaining the Divine message of the
Supreme Being, i.e. "The National Religion now becomes the Great
Religion", which was being explained in the last session. Bần Đạo
raises this general topic so you all will seek in what way our Religion
will become a Great Religion. What has it brought to mankind
spiritually and morally to become universal? We have seen the
reason for Religions: mankind has always had to gather together
into societies and families; even in primitive time, mankind could
never bypass that divine law. At that time, all followed esoteric
dharma and family unanimity. The Supreme Being was once alone;
He divided Himself to bring the Mother Buddha into being. He
created secondary power to unite with the primary power so as to
gain enough power to create the Universe and build families for
mankind. The way the Supreme Being divided Himself is the dharma
to build societies. We have understood this all along: animals have
to come together to reproduce, including the male and female; they
mate in front of us or in secrecy. Consequently, mankind always has
societies and families because the law obligates us; as the saying
goes, "No one comes out of cracks in the earth." (*)

Each individual has a reason for being. Unfortunately, equal social
rights means that the material power on earth has combined with
spiritual power to elevate mankind to lofty position and to enable us
to attain the miraculous mechanism of creation. Philosophy and
science have caused disorder to human spirituality. With their
achievement, they take pride in themselves as the owner of human

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secret mechanisms; they flaunt themselves as God in an arrogant,
complacent, conceited and self-centered way. We have seen them
denounce all natural laws. As mankind goes after materialism,
scientific power, and those bizarre and superstitious theories, they
will render them imprudent. They will believe that there is no
Heaven and Earth, i.e. they will have neither Religion, humanity,
society nor family; they will live like animals together. They will live
without freedom; mankind will have no way to preserve the life of
the people and to avoid destruction. They consider human life an
inanimate object, indulge themselves in pleasures, deceive and force
mankind to slave for materialism. We have seen the dangerous
tragedy which pushes mankind towards annihilation.(*)

Our forefathers have lived for 3,000 years since primordial time. As
truly Holy Saints, They have left for us social and human norms and
rules. They stipulate that there be families, ancestors, and societies;
They build legislation all within such boundary. From the common
people to King, no one is exempt from that law.

Under the influence of Religions, our forefathers taught us to
worship our ancestry, i.e. the deceased. We regard the deceased as
being alive; we worship the life of His children because man is God
on earth and God on earth is God.

We acknowledge God on earth; we worship God, and thus worship
mankind. Religions have taught us for 2,000 years an essential
matter, i.e. the worship of God and Man. In this age of chaos,
mankind has been led by science to the path of death. We need
Religions to show that to the entire world so that mankind awakens,
unites in humanity and enjoys the life-saving remedy.

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Bần Đạo started preaching in the previous session, and continue
today with the conclusion that the worship of God and Man is the
remedy. If mankind still turns their back and denies, they will bear
total annihilation.
Additional note: At the end of paragraphs marked (*), we took the
liberty to break into new paragraphs for better comprehension by the
readers the original version does not break in these places.

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20. CONTINUED EXPLANATION OF THE TWO SENTENCES: "THE
NATIONAL FAITH BECOMES…"

Holy See, the 14th day of the 4th month Mậu Tý year (1948)

Today, I will continue explaining the Divine message of the Supreme
Being, i.e. "The National Religion now becomes a Great Religion, The
Vietnamese customs will one day become human customs." Let us
observe how our National Religion can become a Worldwide
Religion.

At this moment, mankind only follows their own intellectuality.
They have attained secret divine mechanism to build extraordinary
machineries on earth. Those machineries are bestowed by Creation
on the minds of the intellectual so they can protect human life and
bring happiness to mankind.

On the contrary, intellectuals in this age who are acknowledged for
their scientific mindset use such knowledge to kill mankind and
cause cruel scenes. Furthermore, we have witnessed two world
wars where humans killed each other and countless lives were
taken.

Has intellectuality brought happiness to people in this age? In
contrast, it causes tragedies in front of us all. Bần Đạo would only
like to remind children of the Supreme Being that as mankind now
tends towards scientific intellectuality. They disregard mutual love
and have caused innumerable painful tragedies. Mankind no longer
loves each other, and conversely treats each other worse than
animals; they do not respect each other's life, and even kill each
other for happiness.

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As parties are born on this planet, they only aim to eliminate each
other; they do not have any regard for human life. They do not
respect human life, and only build their own honor upon human
bones. We have witnessed their cruel intention and the tragedies,
but no one has clearly understood the miseries of the people to
show them compassion.

Only after Buddhism was born did mankind have compassion for
each other. When there is a loving soul, previous Religions are a
remedy to the tragedies of mankind on this earth. However, such
remedy cannot cure the illnesses of intellectuality and science
produced by humans on this earth. Have we brought happiness to
them? We can only spread the word 'humanity' to build the
foundation for their happiness.

Our race is one of struggle and bravery. Since antiquity, our
forefathers have lived in kindness, respect, love, and dear respect for
human life; the wisdom and intelligence of our forefathers
originated from kindness. There is nothing in front of them that our
forefathers could not seek to understand.

Since Vietnam is a fertile land, our forefathers respected the life of
God's children, acknowledged mankind as their brothers of the same
root, and believed in the saying that "All four seas are our brothers."
Our forefathers loved mankind; any race or people that had the
wisdom and intelligence to render mankind happy would be
worshipped by them. Any Religion that spread to Vietnam was
immediately worshipped by our forefathers; and thus, all Religions
that came to Vietnam achieved perfect success. The religiosity of our
forefathers centers on kindness as the basis, and on humanity as the
means; their solemnity has been obvious since antiquity.

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In our country, there are now Religions of integrity and justice who
are looking after the people like parents and bring happiness to
them; they are heroes who preserve the national essences, support
the nation and worship humanity. We have seen our Religions instill
humanity into the human mind as a remedy to their cruelty.
Due to their over-confidence in and reliance on science, mankind
has lost the core spirit of human ethics. Now, we spread humanity
and righteousness to wake them up so they treat each other with
love and guide each other to universal fraternity.
Our foundation of humanity and righteousness can become a bridge
between nations of the world; our doctrine of humanity and
righteousness is the basic characteristic of Vietnam and can
become the National Religion.

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21. CONTINUED EXPLANATION OF THE TWO SENTENCES: "THE
NATIONAL FAITH BECOMES…"

Holy See, Midnight of the 5th day of the 5th month Mậu Tý year
(11/06/1948)

Today, Bần Đạo will continue explaining the Divine message of the
Supreme Being, i.e. "The Vietnam customs will become mankind's
customs." In the previous session, Bần Đạo already explained clearly
the great contribution of our customs to humanity. Now let us trace
the origin of Vietnam customs. Bần Đạo have said that in order to
cultivate the Vietnam customs, people have to adopt Confucianism
as the basis.

The Supreme Being comes in this age, using Confucianism to bring
about transformation; He shows to the world a state-of-the-art
philosophy, so as to correct mankind's corrupt practices and instill it
into human's holy nature. As the Supreme Being has come to
correct, we have to study Confucianism, what It has brought to us,
and whether It is enough to bring about the transformation. We
must know what tool we have in our hand, before we have enough
courage to head into battles for victory. Let us examine what
mankind is lacking in, what they are looking for and whether we
have that.

Regarding Confucianism, it is no use explaining, because their
Disciples and stories of the Saints since initiation are numerous. It
has been 2,500 years since His Holiness Confucian came to this
world. If we look further, we see that Confucianism first originated
from the ancient time of Phục Hy King (Fuxi -伏羲). There is no older
root, except that we know Confucius learned the doctrine from Châu

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Công (Zhōu Gōng - 周公) in order to renovate Confucianism during
His time on earth.

What has Confucianism achieved? We see that our Confucianism has
a Sacerdotal Council who are mysterious and clever - one person can
build the customs of a nation; however, he does not have enough
capabilities to transform the mind of the entire world. Because of
this shortcoming, the Supreme Being comes to establish the
Sacerdotal Council; His temple is called Cao Đài which clearly
demonstrates the loftiness of His temple on earth. In French, it is
called Haute Église (i.e. lofty faith).

So how does the Confucian Sacerdotal Council build a nation? The
Confucian Sacerdotal Council within a family lays down rules which
give rise to the strictness of the family. Head of a family is a bishop;
the Confucian Sacerdotal Council is the father, and is often called
family head.

The village system has a Sacerdotal Council; according to previous
laws, the Hương Chủ (Village Master) is head of its Sacerdotal
Council. The titles of Hương Cả (Village Headman) and Đại Hương Cả
(Chief Village Headman) were just created recently. In the village of
the old days, the village chief was the highest title. The system goes
from the family level to the village, and then to the nation; head of
the nation is the King. The father of the family, the Head of the
village, and the King of the nation maintain three religious systems,
worshipping three religions. The totality of those three religions is
Confucianism.

The father of the family worships the Ancestors of the Lineage; he is
the bishop or the priest of the family. The Village Head worships the
Divine Beings who sacrificed their (earthly) life for the nation and

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are appointed by the King as governor of the village. Therefore, in
the village, we always see temples worshipping Divine Beings; the
Village Head is the Priest of the village. The King worships the
Supreme Being or the Jade Emperor; His worship has its root from
pre-historic time. Every year, we observe the Nam Giao rituals
which are meant to worship the Supreme Being.

Since the formation of the nation, worship has never been missing
from Vietnamese customs. It is probably thanks to the good karma
our ancestors attain from worshipping the Supreme Being and the
deep affection we inherit that He now comes to return the love. In
this token, He comes to us because our Ancestors sew the deep
affection; He does not come to Vietnam by chance. Our customs
include those of the family, the village and the nation; in other
words, they are the shared customs of the Vietnam society. Now, let
us investigate the link between Confucianism and society. It is law;
although we have been influenced by European civilization for 86
years and have forgotten our good customs, no other country has
achieved the same.

In Confucianism, there are Seventy Two Sages and Three Thousand
Disciples. The Supreme Being has come to establish the Sacerdotal
Council with One Buddha, Three Immortals, Thirty Six Saints,
Seventy Two Sages and Three Thousand disciples. We are obviously
the Confucian Sacerdotal Council. We see that He applies the Zhou
government system to the Religious system so as to bring into being
the core organisation of the Cao Đài Religion, and to give us enough
capability to transform the world. There is no doubt about that.

What do our family rules consist of which were handed down by our
forefathers? Our family rules are based on Confucianism with

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human ethics as the Way, and everyone knows what human ethics
are. They first regulate marriage so that couples live together in
repect of the rights of the owner, i.e. the husband; such rights are
followed by the housework rights of the wife. Those two lines of
rights are topmost. We see that 100 years ago the father had the
right to force his child’s death, unlike the lack of filial piety in this
age. Those who submit themselves the wave of materialism and
freedom even want to reign over their parents. No, Confucianism
never allows such power. Confucianism does not allow the drop of
blood given birth by a subject to reign over the subject; it is against
the law of nature stipulated by the Supreme Being. Let us ask if the
Confucian power of the father is considered oppression by the
current civilization. How tragic! If such power does not correct and
bring human customs back to the previous beautiful ways, the entire
mankind on earth will go after freedom and descend into animals;
they will lose their humanity. Free marriage and decisions will take
place without the parents who have spent their entire life getting
conversant with the world but still have not become perfectly so. We
have seen how freedom to make decisions corrupts human mind
and body; it is undeniable.(*1)

When Bần Đạo was young, I was affected by freedom and was
frustrated by family constraints. Bần Đạo was studying French at
that time. On my return visit to a Confucian teacher, he told me
about the family trouble of a remote relative of mine. His wife
caused him so much trouble that his family fell apart. After the story,
he sighed in saying, “What a tragedy! It was a not a marriage
arranged by their parents; it was their own decision, so now such is
the result.” On that occasion, Bần Đạo asked him, “Aren’t our family
rules too strict? We control our children like a prison guard keeping

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his prisoners. Without freedom, our children will become ignorant.”
He replied, “No, our family rules do not take away freedom; on the
contrary, they give the children a lot of power in regulating that the
mother has to obey her children. “When at home, obey your father;
after marriage, obey your husband; after your husband’s death, obey
your child.” If the child can take on his father’s power, how can it be
oppression? We only control our son’s feelings so he does not love
anyone before his spouse and so he has enough love for his future wife.
In order to arrange the marriage for their son, the parents choose a
wife who can get along with their child in terms of psychology, not
only personality. As they are conversant with life, they understand the
minds and feelings of both, and whether they can share the bitterness
and love even before they know each other.”

Human ethics originate from marriage which Confucianism has
entrusted to the arrangement by the parents. If we let the children
make their own decision, they will only make a wrong one. As
families go wrong, the society will be affected.

Bần Đạo have only talked about family rules; now we will look into
mentality. The crave for freedom has driven the human mind into
indescribable decadence and danger. It sows on this earth an
immoral philosophy of no father, no king, no country and no family.
For this reason, we see children are becoming disobedient to their
father. If someone asks why they do not obey their father and
behave in an inhumane way despite their maturity, do you know
how those unfilial people respond? They reply, “I did not ask them to
give birth to me; I did not want them to. They only did by mistake, so
they have to raise me.” Alas! The deep bond of birth has become
meaningless.

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Unless the Cao Đài Religion appears to correct those customs,
mankind all over the world will turn into cruel animals.
Addititional note: (*1) The original version is, “We have seen how
freedom and self-decision corrupt human mind and body; it is
undeniable.”

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22. PRESERVATION OF CUSTOMS

Holy See, the 12th day of the 5th month Mậu Tý year (18/06/1948)

Today, Bần Đạo continue to study the customs of the Vietnamese
people in comparison to those of others mainly to see if we have any
way to correct their human ethics. In previous sessions, Bần Đạo
already explained that human ethics originate from (the marriage of)
husband and wife who give birth to the relationship of father and
child who in turn give birth to nation, country and society.

We certainly see that human ethics of nations in this age have
deteriorated and decayed. Particularly in Europe, their ethical
norms are the worst; Bần Đạo think they are absolutely corrupt. We
have never heard of marriage between father and daughter or
brother and sister (here), but it often happens in Europe. How
tragic! Over the past 80 years, those evil practices have spread to
our people; they still exist today. How can’t the world fall into chaos
with such evil downturn. As human ethics decay, humans no longer
know their position or human character; the evil seeds keep
multiplying. Consequently, mankind has become overly cruel and
killed each other; they are even more cruel to each other than
animals. There is neither humanity nor religion; fathers do not fulfill
their roles, children not knowing theirs; neither do brothers,
husbands and wives. Human ethics on this earth do not follow any
standard. Fortunately, although the human ethics handed down by
our forefathers are stained somewhat by foreign culture, they can be
corrected and become standards for all nations on earth thanks to
the the coming of the Supreme Being and the propagation of His
True Religion in Vietnam.

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Regarding the role of the husband, we have time-tested examples
and stories which feature the power and strictness of Confucianism;
Confucian laws help control human thinking. Our Confucian ethics
has its natural beauty which captivates and moves any learner.
Those characteristics shape Confucian thinking and physiognomy;
such characteritics only exist in Vietnam. Meanwhile, other
Religions with different physiognomies create their own norms on
the stage of life. Therefore, Confucianism seeps into the core of the
human mind. The many examples which help correct human ethics
mainly serve to highlight the importance of spousal ethics so that
spouses correct each other to the point of perfect Holiness. In
ancient time, the wife of Zhou Gong, who was the Prime Minister of
the dynasty, still earned a living by weaving to support her mother-
in-law. It is remarkable for a mandarin’s wife to behave that way.
When he retired, the old couple treated each other like mistress and
guest. We also have the example of Mr. Phan Thanh Giản’s wife.
After he joined the government, he was always busy with court
work in the North and the Centre and rarely returned to the South.
His wife stayed home and shouldered his responsibilities to his
parents. Such example has never existed in Europe. Only until such
remarkable example is followed by women all over the world will
they earn respect for their gender. Women of the Cao Đài faith
particularly have to achieve that goal in order to correct the Vietnam
customs first.

Regarding the downside, we have the old example as featured by the
saying, “A jealous wife brings disorder to her family.” How strange
and clever! It is not a learned or intellectual woman, but a normal
woman who has enough moral wisdom and conduct to correct her
husband.

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Once upon a time, there was a soldier who held the parasol for Yến
Tử, a Prime Minister. The Prime Minister had a short stature, while
the soldier particularly large. Although Yến Tử was the Prime
Minister, he was courteous, well-mannered, unarrogant, and humble
looking. Meanwhile, the soldier was putting on airs and pompous.
People might have thought he was the Prime Miniter instead! When
the Prime Minister passed by, the soldier’s wife hid behind the door
and saw it. When he went home, she requested him to sign the
divorce paper. He asked why; she replied, “I hid behind the door and
saw you walk by. While the Prime Minister is short, he looks
courteous and humble. You, on the other hand, look absurdly
arrogant. I am too ashamed to continue staying with you.” For that
reason, the soldier recognized his mistake, corrected himself, and
strived to become a General. If we strictly follow human ethics,
wives can mould and teach ethics to their husbands. So do women of
the Cao Đài faith. You have learned virtues and cultivated your
mind; how are you going to teach them to your husbands!

There are many who become arrogant after glory; they do not
remember their humble origin. We must remember that we can
stand tall among others thanks to the blessing of the Supreme Being.
This type of person is numerous; the females should pay attention to
correct and lessen their arrogance.

Regarding father and son, Confucianism leaves behind many
beautiful examples of our ancestors which form the model for social
and national construction. A virtuous father brings up pious
children who are the seeds of foundation for the future. The future
will be indescribably treasurable, because our Confucians said:
“King Nghiêu (Yáo/ 堯) looked for Thuấn (Shùn/ 舜) to pass down
His throne only because the King knew His high filial piety. Nothing

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can compare to true filial piety. Piety gives rise to righteousness,
loyalty, virtuosity and wisdom, i.e. piety is the root of all other virtues.”

In the old days, people searched for piety in the villages, districts,
and provinces by enquiring about filial examples. Looking for piety
means looking for virtuosity, because piety is a good measure of
virtuosity of the court mandarins. The son’s piety is the result of the
father’s kindness. Bần Đạo observe that the Vietnam nation is being
influenced by foreign cultures: children do not need fathers, and
fathers do not care about their children. Such bad custom is very
obvious. Therefore, there are three imporant persons in the society:
the Father, the Village Head, and the King. The Father is the master
of a family, the Villaged head of a village, and the King of a country.
They are the heads from the family to the society. If a father does not
fulfill his role, it is the result of his incapability. The root cause is
freedom in marriage; the husband does not deserve to be one, and
neither does the wife. They come together and build a family on
their own. They are not at all bound by human ethics; it is but
meaningless romance which has no foundation. How can’t they give
birth to unruly children! The mixed blood Vietnamese bear the
worst (influence).

Bần Đạo have said that parents will choose partners for their
children. It is better like what we have seen. When we are little, we
still have our parents and even grandfather and great-grandfather
with us. As we grow up a little, our family is still crowded. That is
before we are wise. When we get wise, our grandfather will have
been gone. Our parents and we too grow old. As they pass away, we
feel that our mental power also fades away.

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The parents are highly knowledgeable and respectable. The son may
not have deep love upon marriage, but as time passes and especially
after the parents pass away, the wife sees in her husband the image
of her father and the husband sees in his wife the image of his
mother. For this reason, they feel comforted and bound to each
other. If there is no trouble in our life, it will be peaceful. If
something breeds annoyance and anger, no remedy can help. As
they have different minds, their tie is broken and they easily part
ways or change partners. Their children witness and learn from
their behaviours. How can’t they become corrupt and stray away
from virtue! The parents should learn from the way our Confucian
forefathers treat others, and how the entire Vietnamese society and
people love our children. Even when a child in the family becomes
impious, the parents may say they would like to disown him but in
fact they never can.

Bần Đạo remember on a trip to Qui Nhơn Bần Đạo met an old man
named Sáu Chèo. He is given that name because he sold paddles. In
his home, there was no painting or sign except for a single parallel
sentence, "Nhược niệm Cửu Huyền chi bổn, khả năng tu tỉnh ngộ
thân" which means if we remember our Nine Generations, we have
to watch ourselves. Bần Đạo found it strange that he only
worshipped a sentence without any nature painting. He said, “that
one sentence is enough to teach the children; if we sincerely
cultivate ourselves, our Nine Generations will be honourable. If we
keep ourselves from falling ill, we will have healthy and smart
children.” Nowadays, since people indulge themselves in sensual
pleasures, their children grow up with tuberculosis, cough and
disability. Many peoples give birth to handicapped children, which is
horrible. For this reason, a few years ago, Hitler implemented a Nazi

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policy which killed or castrate those with disability or illnesses.
They argued that those people do not make any contribution to their
country; they not only consume food of the society but also leave
harm to their children. (According to their argument) They should
be killed so only the healthy remain. The Nazi German went too far
into being cruel and contrary to human ethics.
Our forefathers did not implement such policy, and only relied on
virtue to prevent the children from becoming weak as described.
The Vietnamese people are not destroyed because we have been
cleverly preserving human ethics.

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23. VIETNAM'S CUSTOMS IN COMPARISON WITH OTHERS

Holy See, Night of the 19th day of the 5th month Mậu Tý year
(25/06/1948)

Bần Đạo will continue examining our customs in comparison with
others around the world.

Bần Đạo have preached that there are three powers in our society –
the Father, the Master and the King – who govern the politics of the
country. They are only different in scale, but similar in nature. Those
three powers form the foundation of our customs.

Today, Bần Đạo preach about the power of the father and his court,
and how the family is related to the village and the country.

Among the powers, the king's is the highest, which transforms into
that of the father and the master. It is the way of the Three Bonds:
Father-son, Master-student, King-subject. Bần Đạo will preach
about the king's power in details later. Now, Bần Đạo focus only on
the father's power.

If we look carefully for the distinct characteristics of our society in
comparison to others, it started to exist when His Holiness
Confucius united those three powers into His Sacerdotal Council.
The father is head of the family; the master is head of the entire
village; the king is head of the entire country. Therefore, those three
powers are different in scale, but similar in nature. In the family, if
we do not use the name father, we call him King of the family for
leading his court. The wife of the family is also called the Prime
Minister, and the children are called Departmental Ministers,
subjects or workers to help with the chores.

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Therefore, according to the Vietnamese customs, the family is very
important; the father is just like the king of the country. At the core,
our customs are uniquely beautiful; we just do not care about it. If
we pay attention, we will feel particularly happy because no other
nation is like us. China's civilization bore the same effects, but does
not share the same characteristics or has less of them. The
important element is the family; only when the family is important
will its king be important. For that reason, the father receives the
utmost respect in our customs. Our forefathers knew that as part of
the society the children would grow up and build their families, so
they handed down the tradition. They used family rules as the
objectives which turned into family strictness and held the children
within their boundaries. Such power was mainly to create a future
king for the family. Our forefathers took so much care of that
important matter that they even gave up external affairs or family
activities; they only cared about preserving the tradition and
nurturing the future father so he would deserve the title.

It is common for us to hear the saying, "The children are only pious
when the father is kind." Bần Đạo have said that among all the human
virtues filial piety ranks first. Bần Đạo have also preached that in
ancient time people searched for sages based on filial piety. King
Nghiêu chose Thuấn to succeed his throne because Thuấn was
perfectly pious. Piety is the basis for other virtues; it is spiritual
virtue and is close to human nature. As a person is pious, all other
virtues originate from it. Piety does not develop over one day, but
grows from the mother's milk and forms the basis for other virtues.
We have seen and are sure that those who are pious will become
kind fathers. Those kind fathers are absolutely needed and
important to society.

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A family must have a kind father; why must the father be kind? As
the saying goes, "A kind father raises pious children," and "A pious
father raises pious children; A disobedient father raises disobedient
children." Ancient scriptures and stories leave us many precious
examples. From whom does the naïve child learn from first? He
learns from his parents. His naïve mind does not have clear shape,
because there is nothing foul getting into his mind during infancy.
Who does he look to? He imitates his father, mother and siblings. If a
family has a kind father, how mysterious it is! The child will imitate
him; although the child does not understand and may not obey his
parents, Bần Đạo am sure that the parents' teachings are not lost.
The child may be inattentive, but will take to heart the unpredictable
mystery; we cannot imagine it. When the parents pass away, the
child will study the early day teachings to form the root of his heart.

A kind father in our society does not take away his child's freedom,
but even respect it. Do not infer from the strict teaching style that
the parents of our nation oppress their children and take away their
freedom. It is not true! Perhaps seeing that the family is being
stained, the father has to be strict to his children so as to protect the
future of the family, rather than to deprive the children of their
freedom.

Bần Đạo will tell you this story for your perusal. You will see that
our race has always respected the freedom of the children in a
clever way.

Early in the Lê dynasty, the Prime Minister did not have any child.
The couple usually visited pagodas and shrines to pray for children.
As the saying goes, “Nhơn hữu thiện niệm, thiên tất tùng chi,” ("If
man prays, heaven will respond") the wife gave birth to a son. At

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their old age, it was an unspeakable joy. We Vietnamese often say
that even precious eggs (trứng mỏng?) could not compare with the
mandarin's son. From childhood to adulthood, everyone in the
family was his servant. The couple loved him dearly, but spoiled him
in the meantime; he grew up to be a hooligan and then a completely
mannerless person. Even in that situation, the mandarin and his
wife did not dare to scold him; because they loved him so much,
nobody dared to have a word with him. He could do whatever he
wanted to.

At school age, no classmate could stand him; other mandarins'
children were beaten up by him. There were complaints about him
every day. When he reached 17 or 18 years old, prostitution house,
cabaret, tea house and gambling were nothing new to him. He was
also ill-mannered. All that saw the family situation attributed it to
previous karma which resulted in their mental sufferings. The
couple still spoiled him and did not correct him at all. The mandarin
said to the Minister of Justice in sadness: "Our only child was
granted thanks to our imploration; now such is the result." The
Minister replied: "Will you let me bring your son to my place and
give me full rights to teach him?" As he had no other solution, he let
his friend teach his son but to no avail. His son became even wilder
and more ill-mannered. He was going to use power to correct him,
and told the Prime Minister: "I have to exercise power over your son
and you too. My approach will reduce your honor. I can only correct
him if you grant me your permission." The Prime Minister agreed:
"Please do whatever you can to help; I am helpless now." The
Minister of Justice set the son free to go out and fight, mug, and
commit all sorts of crime; he then arrested and condemned him like
other criminals. In prison, he was tortured so much that he sent the

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news to the Prime Minister. He played the role of a sad father who
stood up at court for his son's crimes. Then, he and the Minister of
Justice visited many people to beg for forgiveness; they took the son
along everywhere. Seeing his crimes caused so much shame to his
father, he felt regrets in his conscience.

Back home, he had a Confucian master teach the son. After the
repentance, he became respectful of his parents and no longer
fooled around. However, in the family, he only respected his parents
and no one else. He would beat people up in any fit of anger. His
father thought of a method; he used the excuse that they were a
noble family and his son had to grow nails. Later, he went out less
and no longer beat other people because his nails broke several
times. When the court held examination, he obtained the doctoral
title for his unusual intelligence and good study records. The king
and everybody felt happy to learn that his personality had changed
for the better; his family was even happier. During the inaugural
ceremony, after the new mandarin completed his rituals before the
ancestors' altar, the Prime Minister called his son over and said:
"Now that you have achieved glory as a mandarin, your nails are no
longer appropriate. Give them to me." He cut them neatly, brought to
the ancestors' altar and wrapped them up in red paper which had
the red writings "Conscience guarding object", i.e. precious object to
protect the conscience. He handed it to his son and taught: "From
now on, if you follow my footsteps to become head of (the king's)
court, this conscience guarding object should never leave you." The
son inherited his father's career and was promoted to head of court,
while the package, i.e. the conscience guarding object, stayed with
him always.

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Bần Đạo dare to say that thanks to such fatherly teaching the
Vietnamese court persisted, and am sure that the father was the one
to lay the first stone of our independence. Thanks to his spirit, we
have gained our independent spirit.
Fatherly teachings are noble and precious. In this token, we have not
deserved the role of head of family. Before we build a family, we
must examine if we deserve to be its head; then, we will put in place
the beautiful norms which our people have ignored in the pursuit of
progress, civilization and modernization. The progress towards
materialism has led us to bad customs and habits which is a
poisonous potion.
Our beautiful customs have been stained; whoever that guides our
spirit should abandon or retain them? Preservation of those perfect
practices is the utmost wish of the Supreme Being. He does not say,
but does hope that we restore our ancestors' customs in order to
create the future customs for the entire world.
If He said it, the Vietnamese people would deem that He was
conservative or would like to remove human freedom; the
materialistic minds would criticize Him that way. Therefore, He does
not say it.

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24. VIETNAM'S CUSTOMS IN COMPARISON WITH OTHERS

Holy See, Night of the 23rd day of the 5th month Mậu Tý year
(1948)

Today, Bần Đạo will continue examining the customs of the
Vietnamese people in comparison to others’.

Bần Đạo have preached in details how fatherhood in our society has
created distinct customs for our people. Bần Đạo will continue
preaching about the rights of the father. Bần Đạo will preach about
the way and rights of the father before moving on to those of the
master, and then those of the king, i.e. the lord.

Everyone knows the crucial point in the Vietnamese society that our
Ancestors are the origin of Religions. Since antiquity, our Ancestors
have handed down to us the tradition of worshipping 'Cửu Huyền
Thất Tổ' (Nine Generations and Seven Forefathers), both the
deceased and living. The worship stays in our soul forever; we can
never forget our Ancestors. This true Religion obliges nations to
acknowledge it as a distinct Religion of an honest people.
Consequently, our way of being a human originates from the
worship of Cửu Huyền Thất Tổ. We do not have to reason further
than the bloodline which our people treasure more than others. Our
Confucian fathers have left behind a legitimate theory to guide our
mind, i.e. "Bất hiếu hữu tam vô hậu nhi kế đại" (Having no children to
maintain the bloodline in three years means impiety). The most
important in the National Religion of Vietnam is having children to
maintain the bloodline of our Ancestors. Unless we fulfill it, we will
be impious to the entire family lineage, including Cửu Huyền Thất
Tổ - totally impious. When we return to the invisible realm, we will
not be able to look our Ancestors in the face. For that reason,

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marriage seems to be strict in our country; it is handed down as the
basis of our National Religion – the strict norm is used to define
rules. It is not surprising why our human rules are so strict.

In the old days, the only goal of marriage is to maintain ancestral
worship. As the saying goes "A long lineage", any family that has a
long bloodline would be very happy. Any such family would be
highly respected according to customs. Our human rules were
certainly very strict; if a wife does not bear any son to maintain the
bloodline three years after marriage, the husband may end the
marriage and marry another woman. Why? If the husband loved his
wife and dared to keep her, he would be impious to Cửu Huyền Thất
Tổ and his parents.

Our way of being a human is that crucial; the rights of the father are
lofty. According to our customs, the father has the right to sentence
his impious son to death; it is lawful indictment. Therefore, our
Ancestors often said: “Quân xử thần tử, thần bất tử bất trung; phụ xử
tử vong, tử bất vong bất hiếu.” ("Any subject that defies the king's
death sentence is unfaithful; any child that defies the father's death
sentence is impious.") Such is our rule of being a human.

If other nations and peoples criticize, they will say that we deprive
the children of freedom and dignity. Bần Đạo am sure that they
yearn for it but cannot put it into practice; our customs cannot be
matched by European countries. Bần Đạo myself witnessed the
power of the father when going to work in Cái Nhum upon
graduation. An old man named Kế Hiền Kỷ in Chánh An village was
head of a family at the age of 55. (*)

At that time, there was a worship ritual to Sir Cao Tằng. According to
the family rule, anyone that was absent from the ritual would lose

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their share of benefits that year. It was a light but reasonable
punishment. Anyone that was punished would have a low status;
they could only cry in privacy. So everyone had to be present. Bần
Đạo came to watch out of curiosity; my family customs were
different. Sir Kế Hiền Kỷ was well known for being a faithful follower
of Confucianism. Bần Đạo was surprised to see many of his children
come; young and old, superior and inferior, they each brought
something and formed a crowd. The ritual started at 7; they picked
up the family head at 5. They gathered to carry him in a group of
thirty or forty people; the others followed after them. There was a
welcoming ceremony at the house of worship. Even the king could
not compare. In the middle of the house, the descendants brought
out an outfit of their ancestors and put it on him; they gave him a
turban and a stick. Bần Đạo thought he was clearly a king of the
family.

If we know how strictly he ruled the family, we will admire him even
more. None of his descendants had ever got involved in any suing;
his family rules are so beautiful and strict, and had been passed
down for five or six generations. Either the paternal or maternal
side could inherit the tradition. In that family, there was a line which
did not miss any name and which stayed on for ages. Now foreign
nations are criticizing us for keeping such ancient tradition; have
any of them been able to? Only a few, if any, of them can just barely.
Why? They are infected with European culture and have abandoned
their treasure. Their spirit has turned feeble and decadent due to the
pursuit of materialism. Many have totally forgotten the beautiful
customs of our forefathers, and given rise to disorder by picking up
worthless objects. Why has caused the recent damages to our

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country? Human ethics have been turned upside down; how can't
there be robberies, turmoil and war!
The human ethics which could have safeguarded the future of our
nation was discarded, while the poison from other people which is
damaging is gladly swallowed. Keep swallowing it and die!
Unless our power can protect the entire nation, it will never be
eternal. We must cultivate the Vietnamese customs, which were
handed down by our Ancestors as the bases, in order to have
enough strength and might to stand beside other nations. Otherwise,
do not expect to reap any fruit soon; it is still wishful thinking.

Additional note: At the end of paragraphs marked (*), we took the
libery to break into new paragraphs for ebtter comprehension by
readers. The origina version does not break in these places.
Respectfully your.

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25. VIETNAM'S CUSTOMS IN COMPARISON WITH OTHERS
(Cont.)

Holy See, Midnight of the 1st day of the 6th month Mậu Tý year
(07/07/1948)

Today, we will continue examining our customs in comparison to
other nations.

Bần Đạo have preached about the third power in our society which
is called the third educational power by Confucianism; the one that
holds such power over human ethics or over his family is the father.
Bần Đạo have preached about his way and power; now Bần Đạo will
preach about master of the second power in the society. (*)

Master of the second power, a.k.a master of the Confucian
civilization, is the Head of the Village. Bần Đạo have said that the
titles of Đại Hương Cả (Chief Village Headman) and Kế Hiền (Deputy
Chief) have only been created in recent time, while Confucianism
only prescribed that of Village Head. He governs the village, and also
the society. Let us diligently study what the customs related to the
second power are like. Bần Đạo would like to foretell that they are
good beyond comparison. Unfortunately, our nation are trending
towards modern civilization and want to abolish them. For that
reason, His Holiness Thanh Sơn proudly crafted the following lines
of poem:

"Our civilization has existed for four thousand years,

Why do we need foreign people to make a change?"

Our civilization has lived through four thousand years; there is no
need for anyone to create a new one.

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The way of the Village Head is to look after the activities of the
village people; he not only governs their activities but also holds
their life and death in his hand. His is the Religion of the norm, i.e. to
service the royal court shrines. The village shrines are those that
worship meritorious mandarins. They worship meritorious
mandarins in any village who were loyal patriots and sacrificed
themselves for the betterment of their country as well as the
protection of their social interests; they made great contribution to
the court and were ordained Deities by the King after passing away.
The best thing is those mandarins will be worshipped in their
hometown. We see clearly the cleverness (inherent in such custom):
the Village Head need above all to create talents, build schools, give
alms to orphans who cannot afford education, and support learned
families. Anyone that passes the (court) examination will not have to
work as an employee and will be called men of letters. I would like
to assert that no other country has ever done like us; when the new
men of letters come back to their hometown or pay homage to their
ancestors in honour, and express their gratitude in front of the
graves of their ancestors. Needless to describe, that day is their most
glorious; such method motivates everyone in the country to study
and put into practice. (*)

Unfortunately, there are many sides to each village, so there are
both good and bad things. Those who have neither skill nor
education and are mean in nature will not have the mental ability to
maintain the well-being of the country; they will become a 'tumour'
of the society. Unless they build a name for themselves, all they can
do is to run away from the village. For that reason, the entire
country study diligently, not only to build a name for ourselves but

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also to learn the strict manners and the way of the righteous men.
Even the bad ones have to correct themselves to stay in the village.

The Village Head is responsible for protecting lives, so in the old
times they used part of the nation's land for common farming. In
those times, the size of common farming land was very large
because people did not have capital property. The deserted land was
turned into farming land by the Village Head. The village people
could only worked for him. Unlike employment in this age, all the
rice they produced belonged to them; those who did not work on
common land would give away a proportion of their rice (to the
village). Rice from the common land was divided into three parts:
two parts were put into the village's common property; the other
one third was submitted to the King's court. Tax was not paid in
money at that time. If the King would like to reward the mandarins,
He only used rice. The amount of rice was different for each level of
high, medium and low ranking mandarins. In addition to rice, the
King also gave special prizes for great merits; they were offered as
pairs of horses from four, six, ten to twenty or fifty. The cleverness
of the country lies in how to motivate the people to farm and raise
livestock. Due to the hard work required in farming, reward by
farming animals replaced horses. In the old days, the mandarins did
not earn money; they only received food. Hence came the term
'receive food'.

A third of the food/ rice submitted to the court was used to pay
salary to the mandarins. When there was a good harvest, the surplus
was put into storage. The same applied to the villages. When the
crop went bad and the people suffered from hunger, the stored food
was immediately distributed to them, which was called 'giving alms
to the poor'. The first one to give alms was the Village Head who

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would use the village storage; if it was not enough, the country's
storage would be used. (*)

The responsibility was not only to help the people to farm, but also
to encourage them to raise livestock, produce craftwork, weave
fabric and silk, do carpentry, weld, and put any other skills to work.
Such was the right of the Village Head. Other administration titles
like Ban Hội Tề (Village Committee), Hương Sư (Advisor), Hương
Hào, etc. all depended on the structure decided by the Village Head.

The Way of the Village Head was to worship meritorious mandarins,
and all the lives of the village people. That ancient custom has been
passed on to us today. They looked after the people both during
their life and after death. Therefore, they had to prepare funeral
suits. In the old days, when there was a funeral, some village people
would be assigned to help; while all mandarins including the
retirees had to attend it.

Also, they had to build hospitals, orphanages, and schools. The
village civilization passed on to us today was subject to the
government of the Village Head.

Bần Đạo recall the time when Bần Đạo was young, especially when
we ground the rice. After the rice was brought into the shed, the
village people, especially women, would gather and grind it into
white so it would be submitted to the court, i.e. submission of food/
salary. Such custom has only been abolished recently. It was like a
festival; it was tiring but strangely joyful. No word can really
describe it. The folk songs sung today came from that grinding
custom. After the grinding was finished, a third was submitted to the
court, while two thirds were saved for the village.

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One more thing to note - if there were poor people in the village, the
Village Head taught all the people to protect them. If they could not
afford marriage, the people would chip in money to help. If they
could not afford a house, they would give out money to build it. In
sickness, people visited to help. The tie was like that among siblings,
but that way of life has been lost now due to too much self-interest.
Selfishness has destroyed all the mutual love in the village.

Let us think it over. Thanks to those social governors whose policy is
much better than Communism, i.e. Communism in spirit, our Nation
already had Communism guide our minds and form the customs for
our common life without stealing and power fights. In the village,
the Village Head position was only appointed through election. Even
the court mandarins would not be able to win it by power unless
they gained the trust of the people. Corrupt officials mostly emerged
in recent dynasties, while mandarins in the old days were very
afraid of it. Once they carried corrupt names, they would not be able
to live with anyone back in the village; the entire village would scold
them beyond tolerance. Therefore, the dharma to guard their soul
was adhered to very diligently; otherwise, they would not be able to
tolerate the criticism of the village. The more glory they had, the
more they maintained their virtues. In the village, those who
devoted themselves to the people, cared for the people, had enough
virtues to bring them up, and loved them like their own children
would be nominated by the people. The election was not conducted
among a random group of people and did not favour any talentless
or non-virtuous people. The court of the Village Head consisted of
the Ban Hội Tề (the Local Administrative Committee) who trained
themselves up through each level. When anyone reached the Village
Head position, they were already very wise and exemplary.

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Additionally, the village regarded him a Judge; the position remains
till now, but the power does not. As the Village Head acted as a Judge
to mediate the people, there was never any suing at the national
court except for serious crimes like despotism and murder which
were escalated to the criminal court. When there was disharmony in
the village, the Village Head would be the first to judge in the village
hall. Minor wrongdoing would be punished by a fine; major ones
would result in public caning. The latter would not cost life, but
those punished would have no way but to go live somewhere else or
to live behind closed doors in a stealthy manner. Otherwise, they
would suffer from disparagement, derision and shame. Families who
had their daughters sing in the mobile theatre would have to move
away. Those who had their daughters bearing child out of wedlock
would have to present themselves in front of the village, including
all their generations. The same happened to insolent wives, bullying
husbands, impious children, and disrespectful brothers. It served to
ensure strict adherence to social customs from the village to the
nation.

The royal court mainly served to preserve the customs, while true
social governance took place within the village. The highest power
in the village, i.e. the Second power, belonged to the Village Head.

Additional note: At the end of paragraphs marked (*), we took the
liberty to break into new paragraphs for easier comprehension by the
readers. The original version does not break in theses places.

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26. ORGANIZATIONAL APPROACHES IN THE OLD VIETNAMESE
VILLAGES

Holy See, Tý time (Midnight) the 5th day of the 6th month Mậu Tý
year (11/07/1948)

Previously, Bần Đạo preached about the way of the social governor,
i.e. the Village Head. Today, Bần Đạo will continue to preach about
our organizational approaches in the village and who holds such
power. (*)

We have seen that Confucianism focuses on the family as the basis,
from the minor family or family lineage to the major family or
nation. The cleverness of the family can be seen through how they
carry themselves. Members in a family linage unite to form a Family
Clan; if a family lineage has enough humanity and virtue, their
Family Clan will focus on building enough methods to put their
capabilities to use. They rely on each family member to stand
honourably among others; as a Family Clan achieves honour, its
representatives who are well-trained in intellectuality, abilities, and
knowledge deserve to represent the family before national laws. It is
how the society is built up. To lead a Family Clan means to hold an
honourable position in the village; young adults are entitled 'thành
đinh', while the elderly are entitled 'kỳ lão'. They all contribute to
the construction of the village; no one is excluded. Although the
Local Administrative Committee is large, Bần Đạo have said that the
Committee at most functions as the court of the Second power, i.e.
the Village Head.

That said, if there is someone to lead the village, the national
government surely knows. Therefore, the titles in the village are

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closely related to the national government, and a title in the national
government is granted to the Village Head.

Our social organization goes from the micro family to the macro
family or the nation. Consequently, according to Confucianism, if the
Third power, i.e. the father in the family, commits sin, he will be
brought to court and accused of lack of strict governance. If the
Second power fails to govern his people, it is also considered lack of
strict governance. Serious punishment will be imposed on those
Second and Third powers beyond denial.

Despite being called the way, the governor must carry it out himself;
as it is not easy to practice, it is even harder to govern. They must
try to demonstrate to the village people that their holy heart is to
look after the people like Confucius, and also to teach them.

There is nothing grand about our social organization, but it is very
hard to realize. When our people still called the father "bố" and the
mother "cái", the title "Bố Cái of the village", or parents of the village,
was a great compliment. Certainly, the Second Power or the power
of the "Bố Cái" was the utmost honour.

As the Second Power assumes the role of a father and a teacher of
the village, let us envision how critical his role is. He looks after the
people like his children on behalf of the national government. In
order to fulfill the role of a parent, the governor must not be selfish;
otherwise, he would be exploiting, robbing and oppressing the
people. The current method still retains such framework; only, the
village government of the modern age no longer looks after the
people, but is greedy and corrupt and becomes a tumour in the
people's mind. Therefore, the Second Power no longer retains his
capability, and no longer has the power to change people's mind.

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How can he prevent the people from following the new civilization,
especially when the Vietnamese people tend to welcome the new
and suppress the old! If he does not have the special talents to
preserve the treasure granted by the Supreme Being and enhance its
value, he will only be parent in title. By restoration (of the old
framework), this society will stand above all others. Because we as
the owner of the treasure disregard it, others also disregard it. Now
that they (the Village Heads) are no longer parents of the village, our
Confucian loftiness has been replaced by corrupt malformations.

Despite his simple mind, the Confucian governor of the village says
little but achieves a lot. When a Village Head in the old days assumed
his role, the national government sent an official to acknowledge
and tell him: "The national court implore that a Village Head fulfill his
role as a parent of the people."

We have previously seen how hard it is to be parents within a
family. It is not easy to be a parent of the village people, who were
called myriad personalities in the old days because many Family
clans unite to form a village. He has to look after the people in
hunger, poverty, and sufferings; if one village person suffers, the
governor has to stand by him like a father by his son. As a father
raises his child to a grownup, the village head also does the same for
his people. The mind of the village head who governs his people
resembles that of a father who guides his children.

If we retained the organizational framework of our forefathers, Bần
Đạo think we would never see the current corruption and the
agonizing turmoil. Today, our national and social customs no longer
exist in their original forms; they have been replaced by vulgar and
disgusting malformations.

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Đức Lý Giáo Tông (His Holiness Pope Ly) established the Bàn Trị Sự
(Village Governing Body) including the positions of Chánh Trị Sự
(Village Head) and the Phó Trị Sự (Deputy Village Head), and then
told Bần Đạo to establish the position of Thông Sự (Village Affairs
Investigator). He said the Phó Trị Sự is the subordinate of the Pope.
As each village has a subordinate of the Pope, there must be a
subordinate of the Hộ Pháp (the Guardian of the Laws/Dharma).
Unless village organisation is essential, His Holiness Pope Li would
not have done this. He designates the Chánh Trị Sự as the Head
or Second Power in the Village in terms of Religious Matters.
What is His Holiness Pope Li’s aspiration for the Chánh Trị Sự? His
Holiness Pope Li means to instill Religious organization into the
Second Power and to restore the former (village organisation). He
further decides to grant the Sub-dignitary authority in the
Sacerdotal Council, i.e. the Holy Body of the Supreme Being. This
means that they will be promoted to Student-Priests, Priests, and
other positions in the Holy Body. Since He would like to reform the
society, He establishes a Religious governing framework to waken
the people. They will recognize the treasure and preserve, refine,
and perfect the village. Such is His intention. Will the Village
Governing Body of our nation one day have enough capability and
virtue to reform our society at the village level? Will they be able to
gradually restore the ancient oganisation of our nation?

Bần Đạo am sure that the Cao Đài Religion can accomplish it thanks
to the hands of the entire Vietnamese people. Whether it takes a
long time or not, it is fine that we accomplish it. Bần Đạo am only
afraid that instead of restoring the former framework, those minds
and appearances in front of our eyes will trend towards (translator’s
note: modern) social organisation and destroy our customs. Instead

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of resurrecting our fortune, they will devastate the beautiful legacy
which has lasted four thousand years. Bần Đạo wish that all the
children of the Supreme Being in the village, i.e. the Village
Governing Body, knew your criticial duties so you would have
enough mental strength to follow the Holy will of His Holiness Pope
Li and the Supreme Being. Bần Đạo hope that everyone perfects the
beauty of our Forefathers’ precious legacy so it will have enough
power and capability to be an example for all other peoples. At this
time, people are suffering in their soul; if they see our policy
accomplished, they will follow and learn from Cao Đài without
feeling shame.
All the males and females should remember these words. When
peace is restored, let us reorganise the Village Governing Body to
revive the perfect and powerful foundation of our nation. The
beauty and power of our nation comes from the villages. If you
create ugliness, the result will be ugly; if you create beauty, the
result will be beautiful and strong. A healthy seed will grow into a
strong plant; otherwise, it will grow into a weak one.

Additional note: At the end of paragraphs marked (*), we took the
liberty to break into new paragraphs for easier comprehension by the
readers. The original version does not break in these places.

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27. THE FIRST/ PRIMARY POWER OF THE VIETNAM SOCIETY

Holy See, Midnight of the 9th day of the 6th month Mậu Tý year
(15/07/1948)

Tonight, Bần Đạo will continue to preach about the first/ primary
power of our society. In previous sessions, Bần Đạo already
preached about the second power, i.e. the village power, and clearly
explained the traditional organisational method whereby the family
forms the foundation. The micro family within each home is
connected to their entire family lineage, or line characteristics. That
is how the village is organized under the second power the second
power. Now, we have come to the First/ Primary power who leads
the macro family or nation.

We have understood the Holy will of the Supreme Being from the
way He created our race and moulded our spirit to form our
national standing wherein the family is the basis. We see clearly that
the Supreme Being would like the entire mankind to unite into a
great universal later on. Therefore, He arranged for one of His
peoples to cultivate their virtues as the foundation of mankind’s
virtues. He used His power to build the Vietnam nation so we will
become the model for the future government of mankind. Even if we
were not proud, we would still realize that we are not mistaken.
Whether people want it or not, the invisible power still steer nations
towards unity into a great family.

Having said that, Bần Đạo will preach about the First/ Primary
power as organized and passed down by our forefathers in our
culture – i.e. the King. The First/ Primary power is the teacher and
father of the entire nation. He is just like the father in the micro
family. Confucius said, “The government of a nation is not different

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from that of a family;” such is the Confucian way. We have seen that
before ceding power to another king, the incumbent king, whether
he is in power or not, usually said or mentioned in their will that
they wished for the successor to deserve to be parent of the people.
Despite being simple, our culture is profound in that we say little
and act diligently. The difficulty and criticality are unimaginable.

Bần Đạo repeat once again that when our An Nam race still called
the father “Bố” and the mother “Cái”, any king that was granted the
title “Bố Cái” by the people like “Bố Cái the Great” would win
unspeakable honour for his dynasty. His honour would also be
indescribable in the people’s heart. Little said but much done. Our
culture is an amended version of the Chinese culture; we adopted it
for ourselves. We turned its foundation into our own possession
with our own special characteristics. Perhaps no other nation is that
clever.

Let us recall the words which king Hớn Chiêu Liệt (Liú Bèi -昭烈皇
帝) left to his successor, “If any governor rules his people with
objectivity, the nation will be peaceful and prosper.” Hớn Chiêu Liệt
told his successor, “Vật dĩ thiện tiểu nhi bất vi, vật dĩ ác tiểu nhi vi
chi.” (i.e. Hớn Chiêu Liệt advised his son not to ignore any minor
good deed, and not to commit any minor sin) As the king knew his
son held the fate of the nation in his hand and looked after the entire
people, he left his son a timeless advice. If all the kings in the world
who decide the life of nations keep that advice as a “treasure in their
heart”, Bần Đạo am sure that proper implementation will bring the
utmost happiness to the people. (*)

Our forefathers would like the king to have justified and honest love
for the people like that of a father for his children. If the king looks

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after his people like a father, i.e. using love as power and justice as
the rule, no other country on earth will equal in happiness. The
current turbulence came about because the governor who decides
the fate of the nation only cares about themselves rather than the
people. There is a saying, “Thiên hạ vi gia.” (The people are the
family) The king lives with his people like a father with his children.
The king should regard his nation as his home and love the people
like his children; in contrast, they treat their people like their own
possession. Instead of regarding the people as their own children,
they treat them like slaves or their personal property. They have
mistaken our Confucian concept.

How clever the organisation is! Even the king does not fall out of the
family boundary. There is nothing to say when the throne is
succeeded by virtuous kings. When the king lets his son succeed the
throne, he must protect (the virtues of) his family first because his
family is the most important of the nation. Since nations no longer
follow Confucianism during their construction, they have become
corrupt; why so? Because there are no strict family rules! For this
reason, the old stories teach us that it is the most detrimental when
there is chaos in the royal family. It is undeniable. Unless the king
imposes strict rules over his family, he will face corruption. The
corruption of the most important family is closely related to that of
the entire nation. (*)

The king essentially (should) regard the people as his children and
the nation as his family; he (should) hold human ethics in high
regard. With the power over human life, unless he exercises that
power properly, the people will suffer. There is nothing to say when
the people can bear it. Otherwise, chaos will ensue and the dynasty
as well as the nation will fall.

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The building of a nation has its roots in the family. We cannot deny
that we know the family, or relinquish human ethics. Only atheists
deny human ethics. If we do not deny human ethics, we do not deny
the family, and thus cannot deny the future and destiny of the
nation. Therefore, the basis of our Vietnamese culture originates
from human ethics and the family. However people speak/ lecture
about our culture, the essence still centers on the family. The family
categorized into three levels – the micro, medium and macro
families. The macro family is the nation; the medium is the village
and the micro is the family clan. There is nothing strange or difficult,
but we cannot change those categories because they align with the
three levels of evolution. The Universe consists of the upper, middle
and lower worlds; the nature of such evolution order cannot be
destroyed.

How clever our social organisation is! Bần Đạo am sure that it is the
most noble. Unfortunately, we hold a treasure but do not appreciate
it. We discard it and nibble at other’s garbage which we claim for
our property. The Supreme Being comes to waken mankind; that is
why He told our king: “The Vietnamese culture will one day become
human culture.” He implies that our forefathers left us a culture
which will become the culture of all humanity.

He lets us know that we have a treasure which people are looking
for to sustain their life.

Additional note: At the end of paragraphs marked (*), we took the
liberty to break into new paragraphs for easier comprehension by the
readers. The original version does not break in these places.

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28. THE MEANINGS OF NHẠC TẤU HUÂN THIÊN (RITUAL MUSIC)

The Temple of Gratitude, Ngọ time on the 15th day of the 4th month
Mậu Tý year (23/05/1948)

Because there are miracles integral to it, today Bần Đạo preach
about Ritual Music for us to avoid misbehaviours during the rituals
due to lack of understanding of its meanings and due to lack of
conformation with the rules of “Nhạc Tấu Huân Thiên”.

In the East and in the Cao Đài Religion, we have drums and bells,
while in Europe there are only bells and not drums. Why? Why does
the East use drums and Europe use bells? Drums create the sound of
the Religion/ the Tao.

Religions teach us that when there was no Universe, two sources of
energies collided and exploded into flame which is the Monad. The
Master of the Monad is the Supreme Being. When lightning strikes,
what do we hear! Our An Nam people call it “ầm”, while religions call
it “ùm”. Buddhism changed into “úm” as in “úm ma ni bát rị hồng”
(Oṃ maṇi padme hūṃ). This mantra means to hold in our hands the
power of creation. What does the explosion sound like? After the
explosion, we hear resonance. The explosion resembles the drum
beats, while the resonance resembles the bell chimes. Therefore,
religions originate from the East, and spread to Europe through the
bell chime. European religions follow Buddhism which came into
being in the East, but they do not retain the basic principles.

Why do Bần Đạo often remind all of us to stand orderly and
solemnly during the “Nhạc Tấu Huân Thiên” Ritual, i.e. the Ritual to
offer life to the Supreme Being who is the Master of the entire
Universe? Muic amplifies the vitality of the Universe of unanimous

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beings. In the East, there is a saying, “Biều thổ cách mộc thạch kim dử
tư trước bãi nát âm.” If we can put inanimate objects in order and
harmony, we will attain the Tao. Their sound and our prayers
together are called unanimous sound, i.e. humans and other beings
share the same sound during the ritual. In the Jade Palace, there is a
poem, “The eight types of soul sing in praise of the Old King; All beings
together pray the name of the Supreme Being.”
When the music starts, everyone must keep silent and offer the
sound. The secret is called “Phi tướng lễ” (Formless ritual); its main
purpose is to present to the Supreme Being that we children know
the miraculous rationale of the Merciful Father who would like His
children to follow His footsteps and His eternal rules. The ritual is just
as important as the offering of the Three Treasures. Bần Đạo repeat
that when the “Nhạc Tấu Huân Thiên” starts, we must stand
still; those who do not enter in time must stand outside.

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