IV. HIS LAST SIX YEARS (1927-1932)
Those who chose
esotericism gradually gathered around Ngô Minh Chiêu in order to practise
meditation under his instruction. A group of followers from Cần Thơ province
set up Chiếu Minh séance there. Chiếu Minh gradually turned into an esoteric
branch of Caodaism. They established Chiếu Minh cemetery in Cần Thơ in May 1927.
1. His first visit to
Bokor mountain
In June 1928, obeying
Caodai God’s instruction, Ngô Văn Chiêu asked for a six-month leave and paid a
visit to Bokor mountain (Cambodia).[1] Accompanied
by about thirty followers, he departed on Wednesday 13 June 1928.
A period of time after
returning to Saigon office, Chiêu
and a group of his followers travelled to six of Cochinchinese provinces.
First, they visited Gò Công, Mỹ Tho, Bến Tre; then, Cần Thơ, Sóc Trăng, and Bạc
Liêu.
2. His attainment to
Dao
On Thursday 03 April
1930, at noon, Ngô Văn Chiêu was physically staying at home (110 Bonard
street, Saigon), but his spirit and an immortal named Vân Trung Tử co-bestowed
a poem at Hiệp Minh séance (Cái Khế, Cần Thơ province).
This event proved that he
had attained Dao in his lifetime. His followers annually celebrate his
attainment to Dao on the fifth of the third lunar month.
3. His second visit to
Bokor mountain
In December 1932, Ngô Văn
Chiêu retired, left for Cần Thơ province, where he stayed at the house of a
follower named Lý Trọng Quý, at 39 Nguyễn An Ninh street.
On Wednesday 30 March
1932, he paid a second visit to Bokor mountain. Knowing his intention to pass
away there, the accompanying followers persistently begged him to return to Cần
Thơ.
He arrived in Cần Thơ on
Sunday 10 April 1932 and stayed there until the day he departed this life. He
was not willing to dwell in any of the followers’ houses that time; thus, they
put up a thatched hut (thảo lư) not far from Chiếu Minh cemetery, about
three kilometres from the city of Cần
Thơ
4. Liberation from body
On Monday morning (18
April 1932), Ngô Văn Chiêu asked his followers to prepare a car for his
returning home in Tân An province. After the noon meditation session a medium
named Lê Văn Ngưng (1905-1948) carried him on his back to the car.
He sat alone in the back
seat. Besides Lê Văn Ngưng and some followers was his fifth daughter (Ngô Thị
Nguyệt). During the trip, his complexion gradually turned into saffron colour.
Leaving Cần Thơ ferry,
they went to Vĩnh Long province and got on board the Mỹ Thuận ferry. While the
ferry was crossing the Tiền Giang river (a branch of the Mekong river,
or Cửu Long in Vietnamese, i.e., nine dragons), near midstream, Chiêu quietly
left his body at around 3 p.m. His liberation from body in this way tacitly
confirmed what Caodai God taught him in mid 1924:
Now that Your Master has awarded good
marks for your deep merit,
In the future you will
ride a dragon back to the origin.
As requested by his
followers, the ferry returned to the port of departure. On the way back to thảo
lư (thatched hut), his saffron complexion changed into normal one, and
his left eye (yang) still remained lively open while the other one (yin) was
tightly closed.
The holy icon of Caodaism
is an open left eye – the God’s Eye (Thiên nhãn). Like the case of Ngô
Văn Chiêu, for successful Caodai meditators, the open left eye on departing
this life is a mystic proof of their attainment to Dao (đắc đạo).
5. Funeral
At thảo lư (thatched
hut), Chiếu Minh followers found Chiêu’s last message in an envelope:
That’s all! Be
consistent, my brethren.
Our Master never
forgets me.
I am
everlasting. Don’t be wordy.
Respectfully yours.
Chiêu, the poor priest.
22 August 31.
Enclosed was one hundred
piasters for his funeral expense. The followers were recommended not to spend
more than that sum, and not to accept any offerings.
Obeying his last will,
the followers themselves sat the corpse sitting in meditation position in a hexagonal
coffin, 0.80 metres in diameter, 1.20 metres high.
They pushed the hearse to
Chiếu Minh cemetery, about 200 metres from thảo lư. The hexagonal
coffin was placed on a built platform, then enclosed with bricks. Finally, the
tomb was built in the shape of a three-storied hexagonal tower.
It was a very simple
funeral, without music and prayers. During his life-time, Ngô Văn Chiêu said
that he prayed for himself every day, that he knew who he was and where he
would go after leaving his corporeal body; therefore, it was unnecessary to
recite prayers for his soul’s salvation.
From near and far,
thousands of people poured into Cần Thơ province. Besides the followers, lots
of attendants were in his mourning. His funeral was in the news.
According to a message
received at a séance held on Friday 03 August 1934 at thảo lư (thatched
hut, Cần Thơ province), Great immortal Ngô Minh Chiêu is the Second Divine
Person.[2]
HUỆ KHẢI
[1] Bokor (or Tà Lơn, Trà Lơn in
Vietnamese) is 1,080 metres high, in Kampot province (or Cần Giọt in
Vietnamese).
[2] The Second Divine Person (Ngôi
Hai) is like the concept of the Trinity in Christianity. In other words,
the First Divine Person (Ngôi Một) is Caodai God, who is also Father or
Master in Caodaism.
