"Aristotle's Four Causes Explained"

Aristotle argued that as everything is in a constant state of change, this change must be caused. In order for us to truly have knowledge of a certain thing, we need to know its cause, how it has come to be and how it goes from its potentiality to its actuality. In order to answer this, Aristotle developed the four causes. What are the four causes? We have the material cause, the efficient cause, the formal cause and the final cause. Right. So let me explain them further. Let's take an inanimate object, a wooden chair. The material cause is the material the thing is made of. So for the chair, the material would be the wood. Now wood alone is not enough to make a chair. Of course. Then we have the formal cause. This is the actual form or shape the thing needs to be in order to reach its telos. So for the chair, the formal cause would be the four legs and a seat. The material needs the form in order to reach its purpose. Yes, I see. From there, we need the efficient cause. The efficient cause is the external agent which causes the change in the material so it can turn into its desired form. So for the chair, the efficient cause would be the carpenter. The one who gathered the materials visualized the form and fashioned the materials into this form. And what is the fourth cause? Well, this is the final cause. This is the end, the telos, when a certain thing has reached its actuality and is fulfilling its purpose. So for the chair, if people can sit on it, it has reached its final cause. I see. Very interesting. So you, your existence can be traced to the four causes. Your DNA would be your material cause. The human shape is your formal cause. Your parents are your efficient cause. And you living, breathing and existing is your final cause as a human being. Aristotle believed everything in the empirical world, including the empirical world itself, goes through the four causes. For Aristotle, the four causes was the way to understand the world. It discovers the why in our world. It allows us to reach the truth as to why something is in existence and understand its cause. Using this method of thinking, the subject of science grew exponentially over the years, allowing us to discover and understand the way our fascinating world works. Here's the problem I see. If everything is changing and relies on the four causes to come into existence, then how did the universe itself come into existence? Before the universe, there was nothing. So how could there have been the causes to bring everything about and start a continuous process?