NGO VAN CHIEU

born 1878, Binh Tay, Vietnam died 1926?, Tay Ninh also called Ngo Minh Chieu founder of the Vietnamese religious sect Cao Dai (q.v.). Ngo Van Chieu graduated from a provincial college in My Tho and entered the French colonial immigration service, where he served until 1902. In 1919, during a sance, he received what he conceived to be a revelation calling him to a religious mission. After a period of study and meditation, he announced the formation of Cao Dai (literally meaning High Tower, a Taoist epithet for the supreme deity). Cao Dai was formally established in 1926 by Le Van Trung, a former government official, who became its leader, or pope. Cao Dai contains elements of Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, and Roman Catholicism.