Tay Ninh Temple I
The bizarre Cao Dai temple at Tay Ninh, Vietnam. Caodaism is a minority religion that is said to embrace Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and Christianity. The temple is laid out on nine levels (one for each of the "steps to heaven"), finally reaching a large blue globe reaching a divine eye. Monks sit at steps according to their position; they graduate from step to step by passing tests - generally involving meditation - but generally die before reaching the ninth and final step because the process takes so long.
Still, considering the current state of the world, it seems to have a lot more going for it than some other religions.
Scanned from a set of slide photographs of a 1994 trip to South East Asia and China.
Tay Ninh Temple I
The bizarre Cao Dai temple at Tay Ninh, Vietnam. Caodaism is a minority religion that is said to embrace Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and Christianity. The temple is laid out on nine levels (one for each of the "steps to heaven"), finally reaching a large blue globe reaching a divine eye. Monks sit at steps according to their position; they graduate from step to step by passing tests - generally involving meditation - but generally die before reaching the ninth and final step because the process takes so long.
Still, considering the current state of the world, it seems to have a lot more going for it than some other religions.
Scanned from a set of slide photographs of a 1994 trip to South East Asia and China.