B. The Meaning of Life  

The profound meaning of a CaoDaist's existence can be succinctly encapsulated in the divine message:

However, elaborating on the entirety of the philosophy surrounding the value of human life within a few pages is a formidable task.

Life extends beyond the physical realm, encompassing spiritual activities in unseen dimensions both before and after our earthly existence.

The intricate web of interconnections and reciprocal influences gives rise to the karmic law, binding individuals to their past lives and contemporaries in their shared community.

What holds true in earthly existence pales in significance when juxtaposed with the mysteries of the invisible realms.

To unravel the meaning of life, we must establish a foundational perspective — one that is rational and comprehensible.

This foundational concept must be presented in a simplified manner, as it forms the basis for a comprehensive system of thought that governs the entire universe. For our purposes, let us begin with the inception of an individual's life.

Prior to their earthly arrival, before they materialize with three constitutive elements, do their existence and activities possess intentionality?

Every CaoDaist disciple unequivocally answers in the affirmative — there is intentionality.

On the path to earthly life, the soul embarks on a series of purposeful activities across unseen realms to prepare itself for incarnation in a human body.

To prevent any preconceived biases, these realms remain unnamed to avoid misconceptions. The soul's activities in these imperceptible dimensions aim to establish unique bonds or dwellings corresponding to each plane within the unseen world.

As the soul progresses toward Earth, it carries these previous bonds or dwellings with it. At each plane, it dons a new, denser, and weightier frame, layering over the previous dwelling. The densest and heaviest of these frames is our visible physical body.

Once the soul borrows the physical body to manifest God's vitality in a specific individual, it is bound by destiny to return to its source.

During this journey back to its source from the earthly world, the soul must shed the dwellings borrowed in earlier stages.

The last dwelling used on the journey to Earth will be the first to be discarded, and in this sequential fashion, it continues to shed other constitutive bonds after relinquishing the final frame, our physical body.

A verse from CaoDai prayers provides a rough depiction of this process:

Throughout this two-way journey, encompassing stages of creation, maintenance, and dissolution, we focus on one stage: when the soul incarnates in bodily flesh.

Returning to the present reality of a CaoDaist disciple on Earth, we ponder the essence of their life within the broader context of human creation in the universe.

When a disciple recognizes themselves as a child of God, they seek to emulate the virtues inherent in God.

You might often hear CaoDaists proclaim, "GOD is YOU and YOU are GOD". This serves as a reminder of their duty to reflect God's image in the world.

God's love for life is boundless, and in earthly existence, disciples strive to embody this virtue by directing all their actions and thoughts toward the singular purpose of sustaining life and preserving all living creatures.

In essence, a disciple's life is dedicated to serving all beings.

Through daily acts of offering flowers, white wine, and tea — symbolizing their devotion of body, mind, and soul to God — they beseech acceptance as servants of all living creatures. This, in essence, is the foundational philosophy of human life: Service.

You may wonder about the practical actions undertaken by CaoDaists to manifest the meaning of their lives. The diverse stages of progress among disciples preclude a one-size-fits-all approach.

Prescribing identical tasks for all disciples is untenable given their varying levels of advancement. While there is no comprehensive list detailing daily activities for every disciple worldwide, there is a universal law — love.

The expression of God's love assumes unique forms within each nation and religion worldwide. As a result, some specific articles of law followed by the CaoDai Church in Vietnam may not be applicable to people of other nations and may evolve accordingly.

This adaptability is a distinctive facet of CaoDaist life. The church's rigorous laws are not impervious barriers to outsiders but rather a sturdy framework within which disciples evolve into serving individuals, progressively expanding the scope of their activities and their capacity for embracing everyone, mirroring the boundless love of God.