Leonardo da Vinci
This is the man on whom everyone in the present has ‘blamed’ for a heretical concept from the distant past. It would be foolish to tackle this misunderstanding without understanding the man first. As usual, I will rely upon astrology for clues.
Surprise, surprise! A Finger of God: the Moon (conjunct Jupiter) inconjunct with both Neptune and Pluto. As always, this implies that Leonardo was placed on this earth to reveal a ‘truth’.
Moon Conjunct Jupiter
This aspect is very easy to live with. You are probably well liked, because your optimistic attitude warms people up. You can even make others feel good when they are depressed. And when you are depressed, you don’t spread it around. Even in your worst mood you can look at the situation with humor and laugh at yourself, which eases your depression and makes the people around you feel good.
Moon Inconjunct Neptune
People with this aspect often hide their real feelings and make sacrifices for others that they do not really want to make. Then they resent the person who asked for the sacrifice. You must learn to tell people how you really feel; if you do not, you have only yourself to blame for what happens. You must learn to accept that you are responsible for your own life. Do not act as if you are the victim of strong forces that you can’t control, because you can control them.
Moon Inconjunct Pluto
You should talk about your feelings to someone you really trust, for otherwise the pressure of your emotions will build up too much. You must be made to realize that at some time everyone has those dark hidden thoughts that you think are so horrible. You are not alone, and you must learn not to blow these ideas up to be more important than they are.
You probably enjoy exploring the mysterious and probing hidden secrets. Even while you are young, you will understand human nature better than most people, but to use this ability positively, you must be reasonably calm about your feelings.
Jupiter Inconjunct Neptune
By itself, this aspect does not guarantee that you will have such problems [with gambling or taking excessive risks], but if it is reinforced by other, similar aspects in your chart, you should be careful of a tendency toward escapism. It is always easier to create an ideal reality within your mind than in the world, but the world is where you must work. Escapism can include using drugs or alcohol or following strange and delusive religious beliefs.
Your idealism can be the source of much creative imagination, leading to profound insights and realizations, but only if you remain connected with the actual day-to-day universe in which the rest of the human race lives.
Jupiter Inconjunct Pluto (implied)
You have a great deal of creative power, and the major challenge of your life will be learning how to handle it. Even at best you will get a certain amount of resistance from others, because they will feel your energy and be afraid of your motives. Unless you show them that your motives are good and that you can be reasoned with, you will run into opponents who are more powerful than you, who will stop you and make your efforts futile.
The Man
“Leonardo recorded only two childhood incidents. One, which he regarded as an omen, was when a kite dropped from the sky and hovered over his cradle, its tail feathers brushing his face. The second occurred while he was exploring in the mountains: he discovered a cave and was both terrified that some great monster might lurk there and driven by curiosity to find out what was inside.” (Wikipedia)
The dynamic that is related to the Finger(s) of God seems to be echoed in the first incident. His second incident shows that the unknown caused him a great deal of fear, and curiosity.
His legal ‘brush’ with homosexuality at age 24 (and earlier – see Venus in Taurus in the Sixth House below) may have made him vulnerable to blackmail later in his career. That is how people have explained his hiding in plain sight spiritual secrets concerning Jesus and Mary Magdalene in the Last Supper mural. Because Leonardo was a believer in John the Baptist being the true Messiah, he would have been a heretic to the Roman Church.
Conclusion
A man who ‘hides’ his knowledge in the simple way of writing backwards is not someone who can be easily deciphered by history. Only when we place a mirror in front of his work can we finally ‘see’ what he knew.
Spiritually, he was a mirror image of Gnostic traditions. In the present day and age, we are ready to accept what he believed to be true. But still there are those who object…
Post Script (about his love interests)
Venus in Taurus
You are a very warm person who forms lasting attachments to others. Your affections don’t change easily, and even if you lose respect for a friend, you will continue to like that person in spite of his or her faults. The only problem is that you want the friend you are with to pay attention to you alone and not be with anyone else at the same time. You will have to learn to be less possessive.
Venus in the Sixth House
You like to do favors for those you love. You feel that love is a kind of service, and the more you can do for someone you like, the better you feel about it. However, you may not find it so easy to accept favors from your loved one in return, because you are more comfortable in the role of giver. This placement can mean that as you get older you will choose a career in an area ruled by Venus, such as entertainment, arts or crafts, counseling, or work involving beauty or recreation. You are likely to be creative, and your work should give you some outlet for your creativity.
Venus Trine Neptune
You very much need to express yourself creatively. You have many beautiful ideas, which you would like to convert into something real. However, in order to do this you must master some artistic craft.
Your relationship with others will be warm and compassionate, but you may not express your love very physically. You idealize love and friendship, but [when] it comes with the opposite sex, this idealism will influence the kind of partner you seek.
This aspect has a spiritual side as well, which will develop as you get older. You have an unusual ability to understand the Christian ideal of universal love, even when you cannot actually express it in your behavior. But don’t punish yourself if you cannot live up to it, for an ideal is only a goal to be worked toward.
Venus Trine Midheaven
This aspect means that you love working with and owning beautiful things, so that later you may have a career in art, crafts, decorating or another field involving beauty. But it also means that you have a harmonious nature, that you like to have a good time with others. You are not especially aggressive, preferring to give in or smooth over a possible dispute rather than fight. This is not because you lack self-confidence, but because you hate conflict. You are very warmhearted and friendly, and you want your relationships to be smooth.
[All text in italics comes from Planets in Youth by Robert Hand]
