A good heart is the spring from which good fortune flows, and all one need do to change one's fate is do good for others. Wang Chang-li helps others through his feng shui expertise and by teaching people to look into their hearts to find their own wellspring of goodness.

Man is by nature good, and no-one deliberately sets out to be evil or unkind. However, this mortal world abounds with temptation, and often a person can be led astray without even realizing, possibly even to the point of doing something they'll regret for the rest of their life. Those who break the law will pay their dues and lose their freedom, enduring what can be their darkest days. The problem that faces anyone in this situation is how to live through this, taking their punishment calmly and maintaining a sense of confidence in their future. It is to help them answer that problem that our justice system takes on counselors, to lead detainees through this dark time and light a candle for them at the end of the tunnel, leading them toward a new life.

The smiling-faced Buddha Maitreya is the Buddhist representation of joy, entreating all those who are happy to pay their respects to him. If someone smiles, even for just a moment, he will bring joy to others, and he will earn good karma. Wang Chang-li, a voluntary counselor for the Taipei and Shihlin Detention Centers, is just this kind of person. No matter where he goes, he always has a smile on his face, sharing his joy with the detainees. To them, he is the very embodiment of the Buddha Maitreya, calming their nerves and giving them a sense of hope and happiness.

The people incarcerated at the detention centers include both sentenced convicts and those detained for trial. Locked away, naturally their spirits fall, especially those sentenced to death, or there on a life sentence. Often they lose all hope, refusing all food and starving themselves. Times like those are when the counselors come in, bringing these prisoners back from the brink.

In one case, a legislator was abducted and kept in a dog cage in Linkou. The perpetrators were initially sentenced to death, and during the nights in prison they would stay awake, kicking up a ruckus and denying the other prisoners the chance to sleep peacefully. They even went on a hunger strike to protest their sentences. Eventually the detention center called for Wang Chang-li's assistance. Wang's kindly, smiling face and sympathetic ear washed away their hostility, and after hearing them plead their case, he encouraged them not to give up on life and to carry on appealing their sentences, to fight for their chance to live. Later, their sentences were commuted to life imprisonment, and their case is still under appeal.

In another case, a woman was convicted of murdering her husband and sentenced to death. After being sentenced, she would neither eat nor sleep, but Wang talked her around, convincing her that life is worth living. She, too, has had a turnaround in her circumstances, with her sentence being commuted to life imprisonment.

Some people may look at the detainees and just see ruthless, cold-blooded criminals with no regard for human life, but sometimes their trials can have been somewhat less than ideal, leading to numerous hunger strikes and general commotions. With boundless patience and compassion, Wang builds a rapport with these people, opening the door to communication and interaction, making him a virtual peacekeeping force for the detention center.

Counselors working in the prison system at the moment are all volunteers, but it's not the sort of job for just anyone. According to Shihlin Detention Center warden Hsieh Chia-wei, counselors must be in good health, of stern moral fiber, well educated, and have a strong desire to help others. Initially they are given a six month trial, after which they must report to the Ministry of Justice for an official offer of employment.

Wang, a feng shui instructor in the Continuing Education Division of Shih Chien University, became a counselor after a lecture during the summer of 1996. At the lecture, he happened upon Shihlin Detention Center chief Li Ching-hua. Li had greatly enjoyed Wang's lecture, and invited him to take up a position as counselor at the detention center, both as a lecturer and to give one-on-one counseling to help keep the prisoners' spirits up and give them the courage to face the future. The job fit perfectly with Wang's charitable principles, and so he accepted without a moment's hesitation.

Wang remembers the first time he visited Shihlin Detention Center and came face to face with so many "evil people"-the incredible fear he felt at the time is indelibly etched on his memory, but he was still determined to help them. He had to bury his fear and put on a sincere smile and chat with the prisoners, exhorting them that "pain and anger are temporary, just as happiness is, so why not just choose to be happy?"