(Clearwisdom.net)
At this critical time in Fa-rectification, there are some practitioners in our region who have not persisted in doing the Falun Gong exercises, so I would like to share some understandings regarding this subject.
In one of Teacher's lectures, he emphasized the importance of doing the exercises.
"Question: A number of students have devoted themselves entirely in the Fa-rectification. They neglect eating and sleeping, and rarely do the exercises. As a result, some students who aren't very busy don't do the exercises either. Doing the exercises doesn't appear to be very important to them.
Teacher: All of you sitting here, listen up. Did you all hear that? You must do well the three things that Dafa disciples should do well. You need to do the exercises. As long as the day of Consummation hasn't arrived you need to do the exercises, you need to study the Fa, and you need to do the Dafa disciples' three things. Definitely. ("Teaching and Explaining the Fa at the Metropolitan New York Fa Conference")
Not doing the exercises is an attachment, and we are clearly not following Teacher's words if we are not doing the exercises. If we do not follow Teacher's requirements, then doesn't it mean that we are following an arrangement of the old forces and are not completely denying the old forces?
In the comment "Be Clearheaded" made on May 8th of 2004, Teacher said
"If you, as a student [of Dafa], do not follow Master's requirements, it is definitely no simple thing. The old forces have arranged for all Dafa disciples a set of their things, so if a Dafa disciple doesn't follow Master's requirements, he must be following the old forces' arrangements. The old forces are in essence gigantic trials and tribulations that accompany you at all times, focused on whether in Fa-rectification Dafa disciples are able to step forward.
If after going through this ordeal some students are still not clearheaded, then they will miss [the opportunities presented in] all of this. Only when you follow Master's requirements are you validating the Fa and cultivating yourself as a Dafa disciple, and only then are you a true Dafa disciple."
(See http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2004/5/11/47970.html)
After July 20, 1999, when the Chinese authorities persecuted us, they always asked us if we were still going to "practice or not." If you kept practicing Falun Gong, then you would be detained, sent to a labor camp or even be persecuted to death! Based on this point, not doing the exercises is not a small problem. It is directly related to the basic principle of whether or not we are able to follow Teacher's Fa to do things, to walk the path arranged by Teacher and to deny the old forces' arrangements.
If we are not serious about doing the exercises, then we will not be able to do well in the three things that Teacher has asked us practitioners to do. Practitioners all know the purpose of doing the exercises. The Falun and all the mechanisms that Teacher has installed for us need the energy from the exercises to enhance them and the sending forth of righteous thoughts is to use supernormal abilities to eliminate the evil elements. Based on my personal understanding, when I feel tired during the intensive sending forth of righteous thoughts, I will regain my energy right away if I do the exercises. Doesn't this prove the importance of doing the exercises? Doing the exercises also changes our physical body to become supernormal, so we should not neglect it.
The above is my personal understanding, and I hope that it can help fellow practitioners to better do the "three things" and save more sentient beings.