The 5th Chapter.

What is an element? original Latin: "Elementum quid?"

...[just] as when the letters of languages are called "elements" because words are composed of them; among philosophers, it signifies a fundamental substanceoriginal German: "Uhrwesen." In 17th-century natural philosophy, this refers to the primal essence or basic ontological unit from which all things are made. of things. Such substances are commonly counted as four—namely Fire, Air, Water, and Earth. The opinion that this [view] is incorrect and not grasped from the true foundation of the knowledge of Creation has been proven in various small treatises of mine, such as: Introduction to True Physics, The Concentrated Center, and in the Epistolary Response to W. F. I., and it is therefore not necessary to repeat it here. I will only mention this for the sake of those who perhaps are unfamiliar with the Latin language, or who cannot obtain the aforementioned booklets: that there is only one visible and tangible element, namely viscous wateroriginal Latin: "Aqua viscosa." This refers to a "thick" or "mucilaginous" primary matter that alchemists believed was the physical root of all substances. or watery slime.

The 4 primary substances.

There is only one Element, namely viscous Water. original Latin: "Unum datur Elementum scil. Aqua viscosa."

This is the first visible beginning of all things, and within it lie hidden Light, Spirit, and Salt. All things, in their final and ultimate dissolution, are also brought back and transformed into this same substance; namely, as soon as a great or larger weight of the universal Spirit-Salt or MercuryHere, "Mercury" refers not just to the metal, but to the universal principle of fluidity, transformation, and the "Spirit" of matter. is brought into it by the artist or—

The reduction of things. original Latin: "rerum reductio."

On the Element.

—or without the assistance of human hands, is brought in through the universal flow of the Air. Then the gross essence of the thing (which is called "Earth") becomes tough through the "fatness" of the universal Salt of Movementoriginal German: "Bewegungs-Saltz." This term describes the active, energetic principle that prevents matter from being inert; it is the "motor" within the substance. in the water, and becomes fluid through its subtlety. Thus, thereafter—whether it was previously metal, vegetable, or animal—it appears in the form of a watery slime or slimy water, and allows itself to be divided into three parts: namely into the thick, the fluid, and the volatile; or Earth, Water, and Air. When these three are joined together again, they subsequently represent a much more glorious, perfect essence, rich in blessing because of the purity of its Salt.

Regeneration. original Latin: "Regeneratio."

Fire, however, is only a quality and not a quantumThe author is arguing that Fire is a "state" or "condition" (quality) rather than a physical "substance" or "amount" (quantum) that takes up space on its own., and this wrathful property consists of or reveals itself in the Salt of Movement when it is immoderately agitated or elevated. In the chapter on Fire, I will reflect on this further; for a closer understanding of the word "Element" and the essence designated by it, I refer the reader to the writings I have just cited.

What is Fire? original Latin: "Ignis quid?"