+++ title: "The Fifth Way" render = true +++
The fifth way is what Li has termed the totality of his knowledge on the subject of self-evolution. The term has a reference to Ouspensky's "The Fourth Way" while also indicating a more advanced form. It is highly recommended to familiarize oneself with Ouspensky's work to get a better perspective on the fifth way.
Time is of the essence; one is extremely short of it. Hence, time is one's most precious commodity. It must not be given away freely, as is commonly done when one 'entertains oneself' or 'chats with friends' or any such trivial activity. What little time one has left after dealing with necessities of subsistence, hygiene and health complications, should be entirely dedicated to fostering one's own evolution.
Of course, any way requires goals which serve as guides. With the fifth way, such goals deal with cultivating habits. All of the biosphere mainly operates on reflexes, or habits. And as Ouspensky emphasized, the mind is incapable of action at crucial moments; the body and emotion centers are much quicker and more powerful. Hence, all the mind can hope to accomplish is to cultivate a tendency for those reflexes, so that those reactions can be transformed to better benefit one's evolution.
All things have value. One must be very clear on one's valuations. The time spent in a certain company can be extrapolated into a price. This price will then serve as a guide to those wishing to share one's company, and for one's decision on whome, if anyone, one must spend time with. One must notify others, using the digital sphere, of the price others will have to pay to obtain the benefit of one's company. This price must be maximized, as it will then also act as a motivator, to continually increase the quality of one's company and counsel. It is also of crucial importance to value the things one purchases for oneself, as gold is a representation of time, and as time is the most important of all commodity, one's gold must always be wisely spent.