Passing through Tam Quan at the northern tip of former Bình Định Province, now part of Gia Lai Province, you come across an elongated sanctuary with multi-tiered roofs rising amid a residential neighborhood. Anyone who has visited Tây Ninh will immediately recognize it as a Cao Đài sanctuary from the three-hall sequence aligned along a single axis shared by the Holy Sees of the religion. Yet the signboard bears a name that sounds unexpected in central Vietnam, Cầu Kho.
Cầu Kho is the name of a neighborhood in Saigon nearly a thousand kilometers to the south. That name is a thread tying this sanctuary back to the earliest temple of Caodaism in Saigon, where migrants from central Vietnam working in the south entered the faith before carrying it home. This is the Holy See of the Cầu Kho Tam Quan Cao Đài Church, an independent church rather than a subordinate parish temple of Tây Ninh.
IThe two words Cầu Kho and the two words Tam Quan
The name of the church joins two place names separated by nearly a thousand kilometers. Cầu Kho was the name of the first Cao Đài temple in Saigon. According to an overview published by the Government Committee for Religious Affairs, that early temple was originally the residence of School Inspector (Đốc học) Đoàn Văn Bản near Cầu Kho Primary School. Tam Quan is where the faith took root in central Vietnam and where the Holy See stands today. Joining the two names tells the story of a journey in miniature, from initiation at Cầu Kho to building the church at Tam Quan.
A distinction should be drawn between the name of the organization and the name of the building. The organization is the Cầu Kho Tam Quan Cao Đài Church (Hội thánh Cao Đài Cầu Kho Tam Quan), its formal title since 2000 (having been called the Tam Quan Central Vietnam Cao Đài Church, Hội Thánh Cao Đài Trung Ương Trung Việt Tam Quan, from 1960 onward). The building itself is the Holy See (Tòa Thánh), the central governing seat of that church. On digital maps, the site usually appears under the name of the church.
In its object of worship, Cầu Kho Tam Quan follows the shared doctrinal foundation of Caodaism. The full name of the religion is Đại Đạo Tam Kỳ Phổ Độ (Great Way of the Third Universal Salvation). The supreme deity venerated is Đức Chí Tôn (the Supreme Being), who is never depicted by a statue but represented by Thiên Nhãn (the Divine Eye), a left eye placed at the highest seat together with the emblems of the sun, moon, and stars (nhật, nguyệt, tinh). Its core teaching is returning the Three Teachings to their source and uniting the Five Branches (tam giáo quy nguyên, ngũ chi phục nhất). Alongside the Father principle, offerings are also presented to Đức Diêu Trì Kim Mẫu, the Maternal Principle in the Cao Đài pantheon.
The six Chinese characters at the top of this page represent the shared formal name of Caodaism, placed here by the library for readers familiar with Sino-Vietnamese script rather than copied from a plaque specific to this Holy See.
Regarding its relationship with the Tây Ninh Holy See, the historical record is straightforward. Both churches venerate Đức Chí Tôn within the religion inaugurated in 1926 and share the same foundational doctrine. Yet Cầu Kho Tam Quan is an independent church with its own charter, its own clerical hierarchy, and its own central seat, and is not subordinate to Tây Ninh. Caodaism today comprises multiple self-governing churches of this kind, each administering its affairs according to its own charter. The library has a separate entry on the Tây Ninh Holy See for comparison.
Two points are frequently confused. First, many people see the words Holy See (Tòa Thánh) and the three-hall layout and assume this is a regional branch of Tây Ninh. It is not. Tây Ninh is the Holy See of one church, and Tam Quan is the Holy See of another. The two churches stand on equal institutional footing, neither subordinate to the other.
Second, the name Cầu Kho does not mean that this Holy See once stood in Saigon. The Holy See has never been located in Cầu Kho. The name is preserved to honor the Saigon temple where the pioneers of central Vietnamese Caodaism first entered the faith.
IIFrom Ông Bái Lịnh Pagoda to the Holy See
The faith reached Tam Quan in the footsteps of people traveling south for work. The milestones below trace the transmission of the religion, the raising of its central sanctuary, and the evolution of its name.
- 1926Inauguration of CaodaismCaodaism emerges in southern Vietnam (Nam Kỳ). Cầu Kho Temple, originally the home of School Inspector Đoàn Văn Bản, serves as the first base of the faith in Saigon.
- Late 1920sCentral Vietnamese migrants initiated at Cầu KhoWorkers and traders from central Vietnam living in Saigon enter Caodaism at Cầu Kho Temple.
- 1927Bringing the faith to Bình ĐịnhIn early 1927, Nguyễn Hữu Hào and Nguyễn Hữu Phương return to Bình Định to spread the faith. A family shrine at the home of Phan Bồi in Tam Quan, known locally as Ông Bái Lịnh Pagoda, becomes the earliest gathering place.
- 1938 (or 1937)Public opening ceremony in central VietnamOn the full moon of the second lunar month of Mậu Dần (the church charter records 1938, while an overview by the Government Committee for Religious Affairs writes 1937), on the feast day of Đức Thái Thượng Lão Quân (Laozi), Cao Đài groups in Tam Quan hold the public opening (Hoát Khai) of the Central Vietnam Central Temple at Phan Bồi's pagoda.
- 1956Groundbreaking of the Holy SeeDignitaries and believers pool donations to purchase land in Tam Quan and begin building the Holy See, completing construction in 1959.
- 1960An Thiên Grand AssemblyThe Holy See is inaugurated during the An Thiên Grand Assembly (Đại lễ Đại hội An Thiên) held from the 12th to the 18th day of the third lunar month of Canh Tý, taking the title Tam Quan Central Vietnam Cao Đài Church.
- 2000Church charter and present titleOn 3 March 2000, the first General Assembly of the church adopts its charter, and from April 2000 it formally uses the name Cầu Kho Tam Quan Cao Đài Church.
- 2007Major restoration of the Holy SeeThe Holy See undergoes a major restoration completed in this year.
Three points where sources differ are stated plainly by the library.
The year and stem-branch cycle of the Tam Quan opening ceremony. Both the preamble to the Charter of the Cầu Kho Tam Quan Cao Đài Church (2020 to 2025 term) and the Inter-Church Cao Đài Review (Tạp chí Liên giao Cao Đài) record that the public opening ceremony (Hoát Khai) of the Central Temple took place on the full moon of the second lunar month of Mậu Dần (1938). Meanwhile, the introductory article on the website of the Government Committee for Religious Affairs writes 15 February 1937 (Mậu Dần). Because 1937 on the lunar calendar was the Đinh Sửu year whereas Mậu Dần was 1938, the figure 1937 in that overview is very likely a typographical slip for Mậu Dần 1938, yet the library records both years so that readers can cross-check different texts with ease.
The founding year of the church. A comparative survey of Cao Đài Holy Sees lists the founding year of the Cầu Kho Tam Quan Church as 1954. By contrast, the church charter and the Government Committee for Religious Affairs trace its institutional formation to the opening of the Central Vietnam Central Temple at Phan Bồi's pagoda (1937 or 1938), followed by the inauguration of the Holy See in 1960. The two sources simply choose different milestones as the starting point.
The number of local temples. The comparative survey of Holy Sees credits the church with 33 temples, ranking seventh among Cao Đài churches, with 20 of those in former Bình Định. The overview by the Government Committee for Religious Affairs lists 29 houses of worship, comprising 26 active temples and 3 inactive ones. The two numbers reflect counts taken at different times. Regarding the 2007 work, the library's directory records it as a completed major restoration, whereas the survey uses the word reconstruction.
IIIThree halls and the altar layout in the church charter
The Holy See follows the shared architectural framework of Caodaism with three halls aligned along a single axis, moving inward from Hiệp Thiên Đài to Cửu Trùng Đài and Bát Quái Đài, accompanied by a Meditation Hall (Tịnh đường) reserved for esoteric contemplation. Although measured architectural drawings of the building have not been published, Articles 9 and 21 of the church charter specify its interior altar arrangements in clear detail.
The front hall and entrance. In Cao Đài doctrine, this section governs communion between the visible and invisible realms and upholds religious law. Under Article 9 of the charter, directly facing Bát Quái Đài stands an altar venerating the character Khí (Vital Breath), with an altar below offering the Three Treasures (Tam Bửu) flanked by two lamps.
The middle hall where dignitaries and believers stand in worship according to clerical rank, with men on one side and women on the other.
The innermost and most sacred section. Bát Quái Đài enshrines the Cosmic Globe (quả Càn Khôn) bearing the Divine Eye (a left eye with sun, moon, and stars), where the divine beings are venerated collectively without carved statues and without the seven thrones seen at Tây Ninh. Immediately in front of Bát Quái Đài stands a three-tiered altar (Thiên bàn) holding the Thái Cực lamp, flower vase, fruit tray, three wine cups, pure water, tea, incense burner, and a pair of lamps.
The Holy See was erected through donations from dignitaries and believers over four years from 1956 to 1959. Under Article 21 of the charter, the complex also includes a Meditation Hall (Tịnh đường) for practitioners of higher esoteric cultivation.
The sanctuary underwent a major restoration completed in 2007. The building seen today reflects that restoration.
The distinct arrangement inside Bát Quái Đài deserves a closer look. At the Tây Ninh Holy See, the Cosmic Globe is accompanied by seven thrones reserved for the highest clerical ranks of that church. At Tam Quan, Article 9 of the charter stipulates that Bát Quái Đài enshrines the Cosmic Globe with the Divine Eye where all divine beings are venerated together, without carved statues and without the seven thrones. That specific detail illustrates a broader truth that Cao Đài churches share a common doctrine while maintaining their own clerical structures and liturgical arrangements, so that looking at an altar tells you how a church is organized.
Some assume that a Holy See without seven thrones is incomplete. That is a misunderstanding. The seven thrones belong specifically to the clerical hierarchy of the Tây Ninh Church. A church with a different clerical structure arranges its sanctuary differently, and omitting both thrones and carved statues is the explicit rule set down in the charter of the Cầu Kho Tam Quan Church. The library records these differences without ranking one liturgy as more orthodox than another.
IVThe lie of the land and orientation
This section presents the library's reading through the lens of traditional geomancy (phong thủy), not something recorded in the documents of the church. Those who built the Holy See followed the three-hall canon of their faith rather than manuals of geomancy. The observations below are offered for readers familiar with traditional Vietnamese siting.
The first element is the macro-landform of the region. Tam Quan lies along the narrow coastal strip of central Vietnam, backed by hills and mountain ranges to the west and facing the East Sea to the east, with coastal plains and sandy flats in between. In classical siting, such a corridor naturally possesses a macro-scale mountain-backed, water-facing posture (tựa sơn hướng thủy), with mountains providing distant support and the sea serving as the great gathering of water. Geomancers call this the landform of the whole basin, shared by every sanctuary within it.
Second is the three-hall axis. The three halls stand in a single straight line with the floor rising in steps from front to back. Read in form-school geomancy, this creates a stepped qi-advancing layout (tiến khí thăng cấp) in which qi enters along a single path, rises one level at each threshold, and comes to rest in Bát Quái Đài, the highest and most enclosed chamber. A sanctuary that converges toward a single inner node in this manner gathers and retains qi rather than letting it disperse.
Third is its role as a central seat. The church holds most of its local temples across former Bình Định, and the Holy See stands at the northern gateway of that territory. Traditional geomancy reads the head sanctuary of a regional network as an ancestral seat (chỗ tổ), the point where a vein originates before branching outward. Here the living vein is human rather than geological, as the faith traveled from Cầu Kho in Saigon to Tam Quan and then branched out from Tam Quan to local temples across the region.
Finally, because the library has not located a survey recording the exact compass bearing of the main facade, it refrains from offering a directional eight-trigram reading based on guesswork. Visitors who come in person can ask the caretakers of the Holy See about its exact orientation.
VMajor annual festivals and all-white ceremonial dress
Under Article 10 of the church charter and the overview by the Government Committee for Religious Affairs, annual grand festivals and commemorative days follow the lunar calendar, comprising four major festivals widely cited alongside two memorial days honoring founding figures of the faith.
| Lunar date | Festival | Observance |
|---|---|---|
| 9th day of the 1st month | Grand Festival of Đức Ngọc Hoàng Thượng Đế | The grand New Year festival and most solemn observance of Caodaism. Believers from affiliated local temples gather at the Holy See for worship. |
| Full moon of the 3rd month | Anniversary of the An Thiên Grand Assembly | The special festival of this church commemorating the 1960 inauguration of the Holy See (preceded on the 13th day of the 3rd month by the memorial day of Elder Ngô Minh Chiêu). |
| Full moon of the 8th month | Grand Festival of Đức Diêu Trì Kim Mẫu | The grand offering dedicated to the Maternal Principle of the pantheon (preceded on the 1st day of the 8th month by the memorial day for departed pioneering disciples and elders). |
| 23rd day of the 8th month | Anniversary of the Founding Declaration of the Faith | Commemorates the opening of Caodaism as stipulated in the church charter. |
| Daily | Four daily services (cúng tứ thời) | The daily liturgical rhythm of Caodaism observed at the four double-hours of Tý, Ngọ, Mẹo, and Dậu. |
The An Thiên festival at the full moon of the third lunar month deserves special mention because it belongs uniquely to this Holy See. The 1960 inauguration lasted from the 12th to the 18th day of the third lunar month of Canh Tý, with the full moon falling right at its center. A striking feature during ceremonies here is ceremonial dress (đạo phục). Under Article 15 of the church charter, unlike many Cao Đài churches that use yellow, blue, and red robes for their clergy, the ceremonial dress of the Cầu Kho Tam Quan Cao Đài Church is entirely white for both dignitaries and lay believers regardless of gender, distinguishing Grand Dress (Đại phục), Medium Dress (Trung phục), and Minor Dress (Tiểu phục) only by the number of folds in the turban (twelve, nine, or seven folds) and the number of buttons on the robe (twelve, nine, or seven buttons).
The church also maintains a substantial community of believers. The overview by the Government Committee for Religious Affairs records 8,545 believers, 405 dignitaries (chức sắc), and 263 lay officers (chức việc) active across eight provinces and cities in central Vietnam and the Central Highlands at the time of compilation.
VILocation And How To Get There
- Address
- Khu phố 2, phường Tam Quan (thị xã Hoài Nhơn cũ, tỉnh Bình Định cũ), tỉnh Gia Lai
- Getting there
- The Holy See stands in Quarter 2 (Khu phố 2), Tam Quan Ward (formerly Hoài Nhơn Town, former Bình Định Province), Gia Lai Province. Reach the center of Tam Quan and ask for directions to the Cầu Kho Tam Quan Cao Đài Holy See.
- Coordinates
- 14.5512, 109.045
This is an active seat of worship, so visitors should follow the customs of the Holy See. Dress modestly, remove shoes before entering the sanctuary hall, use the side doors designated for men or women as indicated on site, and refrain from speaking during services. Visitors outside the faith should stand in the guest area rather than mingling with the ranks of worshippers, and should not step into Bát Quái Đài.
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VIIContribute To This Page
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?Quick Questions
Is the Cầu Kho Tam Quan Holy See subordinate to Tây Ninh
No. It is the Holy See of the Cầu Kho Tam Quan Cao Đài Church, an independent church with its own charter and administrative hierarchy. Both churches venerate Đức Chí Tôn within the religion inaugurated in 1926 and share the same core doctrine, but Cầu Kho Tam Quan is not subordinate to the Tây Ninh Holy See.
Why is it called Cầu Kho Tam Quan
Cầu Kho was the name of the first Cao Đài temple in Saigon, originally the house of School Inspector Đoàn Văn Bản near Cầu Kho Primary School. Migrants from central Vietnam entered the faith there before bringing it back to Tam Quan in 1927. The church name joins those two places and has been used formally since 2000.
When was the Tam Quan Cao Đài Holy See built
Construction began in 1956, finished in 1959, and the Holy See was inaugurated during the An Thiên Grand Assembly from the 12th to the 18th day of the third lunar month of Canh Tý (1960). A major restoration was completed in 2007.
What year was Caodaism publicly opened in Tam Quan
The preamble to the church charter and the Inter-Church Cao Đài Review record that the public opening ceremony (Hoát Khai) of the Central Temple in Tam Quan took place on the full moon of the second lunar month of Mậu Dần (1938), on the feast day of Đức Thái Thượng Lão Quân, whereas an overview by the Government Committee for Religious Affairs writes 15 February 1937 (Mậu Dần). The library records both years so readers can compare sources easily.
What are the major annual festivals at the Cầu Kho Tam Quan Holy See
Under Article 10 of the church charter, the six annual lunar observances are the 9th day of the 1st month (Grand Festival of Đức Ngọc Hoàng Thượng Đế), the 13th day of the 3rd month (Memorial of Elder Ngô Minh Chiêu), the full moon of the 3rd month (Anniversary of the An Thiên Grand Assembly), the 1st day of the 8th month (Memorial of pioneering disciples and elders), the full moon of the 8th month (Grand Festival of Đức Diêu Trì Kim Mẫu), and the 23rd day of the 8th month (Anniversary of the Founding Declaration of the Faith). Four services are held daily.