A Country Singer's Redemption from the Copper Pillar Hell

This is a record of an interview with Chad Morgan, an Australian country music singer who passed away on January 1, 2025, at the age of 91. He was delivered from the Copper Pillar Hell into the Western Dharma-Nature Land at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia on May 26, 2026. This account reflects upon his life and his subsequent spiritual deliverance. Recorded by the chief writer, Venerable Fa Hui, on May 30, 2026.

Chad Morgan speaks:

"Namo Amituofo. I am Chad Morgan. I am deeply grateful to Namo Amituofo and to Practitioner Su of the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre for saving my suffering soul. I never knew that after a person dies, it is possible to fall into hell to undergo punishment—all because of the misguided actions one committed while living as a human being. This is a vital lesson, one I have learned through my own painful experience.

The Agony of the Copper Pillar

After I passed away, my spirit arrived in a place filled with pillars made of copper. These pillars possessed an incredibly high temperature, radiating an intense, scorching heat. My lower body was constantly being burned by these flaming, superheated copper pillars, causing me to bleed and fester endlessly. In a very short time, my body would restore itself, only for the agony of having my lower body destroyed by fire to continue all over again.

It was so painful! So painful! I could not help but let out heart-wrenching wails. I had absolutely no idea why I was experiencing such a thing. Someone simply told me that this place was called the Copper Pillar Hell, and because I had made mistakes while I was alive, I had to come to this place to pay my debts and accept my punishment.

A Golden Light of Deliverance

Just recently, a golden light appeared in the hellish realm, shining directly upon my spirit. Following a warm and powerful voice that called out my name, I was instantly pulled by a force to where I am now: the Western Dharma-Nature Land, located at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Goombungee, Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia.

Listening to the sutras and hearing the Dharma here at the temple, I finally understood why I had fallen into hell. It was due to my indulgence in sensual pleasures and sexual misconduct. As a well-known country singer with many opportunities for touring, I could say that I was successful in my career.

The Hidden Cost of Success

However, success brought with it various tests—tests of whether my heart could remain steadfast and not be seduced by the desires of the body. But, having never understood what the universal principles or the righteous path of Truth were, how could I have known what was wrong with pursuing the satisfaction of bodily desires and the romantic entanglements between men and women?

Education is truly such an important matter. If one does not receive an education in the Buddha’s teachings, one will not understand what is right and what is wrong. This standard of right and wrong is based on the universal principles and the righteous path of Truth—the highest principles that govern the entire universe.

It turns out that whenever a man and a woman engage in a relationship, if either party is already married to someone else, such behavior falls into the category of sexual misconduct. Even from a more subtle perspective, if one has harbored such thoughts in one's heart, that is also considered sexual misconduct.

Reflecting on a Life of Indulgence

To put it in a very simple and easy-to-understand way: if a married man sets his heart on a woman other than his wife, or even harbors thoughts of pursuing or craving her, that falls under the category of sexual misconduct. During the peak of my career, I certainly lacked self-control in my life. My dissolute heart caused me to commit many sins.

Although I eventually stopped these behaviours and established a stable marriage, deep down, because I lacked the awareness that sexual misconduct is wrong, the thoughts remained. I never truly corrected them. Because I did not proactively repent for the mistakes I had made, and because the subtle thoughts deep within my heart were never truly turned around, this situation led to my spirit having to go to the Copper Pillar Hell to undergo retribution after I died.

Listening to Practitioner Su’s lectures here in the Dharma-Nature Land, I have slowly come to understand these principles. I am so grateful to have encountered Namo Amituofo and Practitioner Su, and to have learned this precious knowledge.

The True Benefit of the Dharma

My perspective on human life has completely changed. Education is so important. If one receives the correct education, it will have a profound and positive impact on a person. What is taught at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre is not just the principle of karmic retribution; it also gives learners the opportunity to attain the true benefits of being free from aging, free from illness, and having a spirit that does not die.

I want to say to my son: I am now in the Western Dharma-Nature Land at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Australia, living a very happy and fulfilling life. I have never felt my heart so peaceful and so stable.

Here, I truly have nothing to worry about or be anxious about; there is absolutely no pressure. I am very freely chanting Namo Amituofo, and I am very happy.

A Message to My Son

Regarding my life as your father, you know it well, but I am not certain what you have learned from it, nor do I know if the impression I left on you was good or bad. I truly hope you can come to this place, take a good look, and listen to what Namo Amituofo is teaching.

Before you come, you can look for the Namo Amituofo billboards on the highway from Brisbane to Toowoomba. These billboards have saved so many suffering spirits in Australia, including lonely wandering spirits and suffering beings in space. I was very moved after seeing them, because as a singer, we actually hope to bring spiritual strength to everyone through music and art.

However, because I did not understand the universal principles and the righteous path of Truth in the past, although I had good intentions, I do not know how much of the influence my music had on people was positive and how much was negative.

The True Salvation of the Soul

Regardless, as a singer, I always hoped to express the emotions from the depths of my soul through my singing, allowing the listeners to find redemption in their own souls. Now that I see the Namo Amituofo billboards set up by the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Brisbane, I finally understand what true salvation for the soul is—it is allowing suffering spirits to be bathed in Buddha-light so that they can reach a safe, bright, and beautiful place.

In the spiritual realms, one can clearly see that many spirits have come to the Western Dharma-Nature Land of the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre because they were bathed in the golden light emitted by the Namo Amituofo billboards. This is a world of light, a Buddha-land established by Practitioner Su after realising his true nature and attaining Buddhahood. Its purpose is to allow countless suffering spirits who have nowhere to go to come here, settle down, and have the opportunity to be reborn in the Western Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss.

Gratitude for the Buddha’s Presence in Australia

I am so grateful that Namo Amituofo can appear in Australia, and I am so grateful to Practitioner Su, who is a Buddha, for being able to constantly find ways to help people all over the world, especially Australians, at the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre in Goombungee, Toowoomba, Queensland.

Practitioner Su has always hoped to let more Australians receive an education in the Buddha’s teachings. Because Practitioner Su has been in Australia for a long time, he has a very good impression of Australians and deeply feels that because Australians lack this kind of education, they have not properly considered where their souls will go after death.

Practitioner Su sees so many Australians working busily for their families their whole lives, only to end up aging and falling ill, leaving the world just like that. Their spirits might become cows or ants on the earth, or enter space, continuing to wander in the six realms of rebirth, not knowing when they will have the chance to be saved.

Practitioner Su cannot bear to see the simple and kind-hearted Australians suffer like this, so he has always hoped that more Australians can come to the Hsiang Kuang Pure Land Buddhist Centre to listen to Namo Amituofo’s teachings and understand the facts and truth of the human body and the universe. He hopes that after learning the Buddha’s teachings, Australians can, like Practitioner Su, attain the benefits of being free from aging, free from illness, and having a spirit that does not die.

Now, your father is here in the Western Dharma-Nature Land, happily chanting Namo Amituofo. I hope you, as an Australian, will come here and take a good look. You can call first, or contact the temple in any way. Regardless, I am waiting for you here."