Meaning of Symbols in the Heavenly-Dao Ritual of the CAO DAI Religion in Tay Ninh Holy See

Ritual is a crucial decisive component of religion’s existence. Religious ritual generally manifests through the use of a system of symbols. In Cao Dai religion’s ritual, these symbols integrated themselves into a matrix and are manifested through rites, gestures, manners, behaviors, and sounds… which dignitaries and adepts conducted in the process of ritual. From the perspectives of anthropological research theories and methods, I will decode symbols of Cao Dai religion’s Heavenly-dao (Thiên đạo) ritual and thus it clarifies these symbols’ sacred meanings which in turn, heralds the doctrine, enhances social solidarity, reproduces and consolidates the faith of Cao Dai Tay Ninh Holy See’s adepts.