"the first matter of the stone is the very same with the first matter of all things." - Thomas Vaughan
According to Plato, the four elements are derived from a common source or prima materia (first matter), associated with chaos. Prima materia is also the name alchemists assign to the starting ingredient for the creation of the philosopher's stone.
The raw material out of everything is made
The primary, primordial material
Is Prima Materia pure consciousness?
“The alchemist’s prima materia is the empty and desolate Earth that has been fertilised by the light of the creative word from which the primordial egg arose, and consequently, all life and opportunity for transformation. The seed of life is concealed in the centre of all things and is the original, holistic, and unprocessed consciousness from which all states of consciousness arise. It is the Quintessence, the material beginning and end of all things. The prima materia is the unifying water of life in the mercurial fountain and chaos of the primordial ocean – the massa confusa – from which the other principles originate.” - Alchemy - The divine work
“He who would enter the kingdom of wisdom must be born again; he must become as a little child, for he must divest himself of all the preconceived opinions and erroneous ideas that he has acquired in schools or from books. He must go back to the prima materia, the first substance of nature, and recognize in it the divine life that permeates all things. Alchemy is not merely the art of making gold and silver, but it is the art of making man, of purifying him from all that is gross and material and leading him to the perception of divine truth. The true alchemist transmutes not lead into gold, but darkness into light, ignorance into wisdom, and death into immortality.” — Paracelsus. 1493 - 1541. “The Great Work of Alchemy”
Prima Materia, Quinta Essentia
"This is the Lapis that creates a Quintessence from animals, plants, or minerals. It is the source of all things, as the sages say: "In the beginning, everything was one." The ancients said that the Lapis comes from Chaos, where all things lay hidden until fire ordered and shaped them. Thus, the Lapis gains its true life through the power of the sun, for light grants it perfection. In this stone lies everything: the four elements and their transformation. The philosophers state that the Quinta Essentia is the ultimate goal of all art. For it unites the material with the spiritual and grants life. The Lapis itself manifests as something fluid and solid. Born of the union of opposites, it embodies harmony. Its transformative power is drawn from fire and the heavens. Its origin lies in Chaos, where all things were one. It is said that the Lapis is the bridge between the earthly and the divine. Connecting matter with the purest essence of spirit. In it, all natural properties are united: The powers of creation and destruction, growth and decay. The sages state that its essence is the secret of true transformation. A symbol of rebirth and the eternal cycle. Thus, the Lapis holds the key to the Philosopher's Stone. The source of wisdom and the path to enlightenment. The ancients and later scholars confirm: The Quintessence is in everything, from the elements to the spirit of life." — Sammelhandschrift mit alchemistischen Texten, Mscr.Dresd.J.345 https://digital.slub-dresden.de/werkansicht/dlf/179487/773
“The alchemist’s prima materia is the empty and desolate Earth that has been fertilised by the light of the creative word from which the primordial egg arose, and consequently, all life and opportunity for transformation. The seed of life is concealed in the centre of all things and is the original, holistic, and unprocessed consciousness from which all states of consciousness arise. It is the Quintessence, the material beginning and end of all things. The prima materia is the unifying water of life in the mercurial fountain and chaos of the primordial ocean – the massa confusa – from which the other principles originate.” - Alchemy - The divine work
