By RAYMOND ADEEKO

Staff Writer

Tech's Falun Gong practitioners received a proclamation and two congratulatory letters from state public officials praising the practice.

Falun Gong is a set of exercises aimed at improving the mental and physical wellness of a person through exercises and meditation based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion and forbearance.

Jordan Yan, a doctorate student of micromanufacturing, said Falun Gong is a practice of both the mind and body.

"The exercise is good for your health and spirit," Yan said.

Ting Chen, a graduate student of biomedical engineering, said the practice is also good because it helps the people grow spiritually as well set standards for them.

"Falun Gong helps you connect to a higher being and in turn feel better," Chen said.

Yan said the practice of Falun Gong enables people to better understand life and the situations that they find themselves in.

He said an individual can practice it at any time that is convenient.

However, the practice has been outlawed in China by the communist regime of Jiang Zemin, who also persecuted the practitioners.

Yan said the government did this because of its opposition to the acknowledgement of a higher being, which the Falun Gong recognizes.

"In China the government said there is freedom of belief, but that's untrue," Yan said. "That is why they oppose this practice."

The practice was first introduced to the public in China in 1992 and has since gathered about 70 to 100 million practitioners according to the Falun Gong official Web site www.falundafa.org

The Web site also added that these exercises teach how to relieve stress and promote spiritual growth and enlightenment through a five-step program that involves transmitting energy through the entire body.

Chen said the followers of the Falun Gong think that it not only helps a person grow, but also prevents them from getting sick or contracting illness.

"People like it because they think that by practicing Falun Gong, it will help cure illnesses," Chen said.

Yan encouraged anyone who can to visit the site to learn more about Falun Gong.