Introduction: Leonardo’s Life as a Hero’s Journey

The television series about Leonardo da Vinci, from the classic 1971 miniseries to recent adaptations, does more than dramatize the life of a Renaissance genius. It invites us to see Leonardo’s story through the lens of Peter de Kuster’s Hero’s Journey, a model that transforms biography into a blueprint for personal growth, leadership, and creative living. Leonardo’s journey is not just his own-it is a mirror for our lives, a call to adventure for anyone ready to step into the unknown, face their doubts, and create something extraordinary.

This column will walk you through the series, stage by stage, following the Hero’s Journey model. At every step, you’ll find powerful questions-crafted for “travellers” like you-to help you explore your own legend, just as Leonardo did. Let this be your invitation: as you watch Leonardo’s journey unfold, let it spark your own.

1. The Ordinary World: Vinci and the Roots of Genius

Series summary: The story opens in Vinci, a small Tuscan village, where Leonardo is born out of wedlock. The miniseries and modern adaptations show his early fascination with nature, drawing, and invention-a boy on the margins, curious and restless, living in a world defined by tradition and limits.

Traveller’s Questions:

• What is your “ordinary world”? What routines, beliefs, or surroundings define your life right now?
• Where do you sense a longing for more, as Leonardo did in Vinci?

2. The Call to Adventure: Florence and the Spark of Destiny

Series summary: Young Leonardo moves to Florence, the heart of the Renaissance, to apprentice with Andrea del Verrocchio. The city is alive with art, science, and intrigue. Leonardo’s talent quickly emerges, but so does his hunger to explore beyond painting-to anatomy, engineering, and the mysteries of nature.

Traveller’s Questions:

• What is calling you to step beyond your comfort zone?
• What dream, curiosity, or challenge tugs at you, refusing to let you rest?

3. Refusal of the Call: Doubt, Delay, and the Weight of Genius

Series summary: Leonardo is plagued by self-doubt and perfectionism. The series shows him abandoning works, questioning his talent, and struggling with the expectations of patrons and peers. His refusal is not laziness but fear-of failure, ridicule, and never being understood.

Traveller’s Questions:

• What fears or doubts hold you back from answering your own call?
• What stories do you tell yourself about why you “can’t” or “shouldn’t” pursue your dreams?

4. Meeting the Mentor: Inspiration and Guidance

Series summary: Leonardo finds guidance in mentors like Verrocchio, Lorenzo de’ Medici, and even rivals such as Botticelli and Michelangelo. The series highlights how these relationships shape his path, offering both support and challenge.

Traveller’s Questions:

• Who has been a mentor in your story? What wisdom do you need now?
• If you could ask Leonardo one question, what would it be?

5. Crossing the Threshold: Reinvention in Milan

Series summary: Leonardo leaves Florence for Milan, seeking new opportunities at the court of Ludovico Sforza. Here, he reinvents himself as an engineer, architect, and impresario, taking on projects that push the limits of his imagination.

Traveller’s Questions:

• What decision or action marks your commitment to change?
• What “threshold” do you need to cross to begin your next chapter?

6. Tests, Allies, and Enemies: The Renaissance Labyrinth

Series summary: Milan is a world of intrigue and rivalry. Leonardo faces political upheaval, demanding patrons, and jealous competitors. Allies-apprentices like Salaì and Melzi, and friends like Machiavelli-help him navigate these trials. The series shows how every relationship is a test, every challenge a chance to grow.

Traveller’s Questions:

• Who supports you on your journey? Who or what challenges you?
• How do you relate to both your allies and your adversaries?

7. Approach to the Inmost Cave: The Depths of Creation

Series summary: The “inmost cave” is both literal and metaphorical: Leonardo’s secret anatomical studies, his notebooks filled with inventions, and his boldest works like The Last Supper. The series captures his willingness to face the unknown, to risk failure for the sake of discovery.

Traveller’s Questions:

• What inner or outer challenge must you face to grow?
• What creative risk are you avoiding?

8. The Ordeal: Loss, Exile, and Compassion

Series summary: Leonardo’s world collapses when Milan falls to the French. He loses patrons, projects, and his sense of belonging. The series lingers on his years of wandering, unfinished commissions, and personal losses. Yet through suffering, Leonardo’s compassion and resilience deepen. He cares for friends, comforts the dying, and continues to create.

Traveller’s Questions:

• When have you faced your greatest trial? How did you care for yourself and others?
• What did you learn from your own ordeals?

9. Reward: The Magician’s Insight

Series summary: After the ordeal comes the reward-not just fame, but wisdom. Leonardo’s later works (the Mona Lisa, treatises on painting and science) reflect a deeper understanding of the world’s interconnectedness. The series celebrates his ability to turn struggle into creativity, to inspire generations with his vision.

Traveller’s Questions:

• What gifts, insights, or strengths have you gained on your journey?
• What “superpowers” have emerged from your struggles?

10. The Road Back: Legacy and Responsibility

Series summary: In his final years, Leonardo returns to Florence and then moves to France, where he is welcomed by King Francis I. He becomes a mentor, sharing his knowledge and encouraging others to pursue their own paths. The Palazzo Vecchio and the French court become symbols of his new role as a leader and teacher.

Traveller’s Questions:

• How will you bring your new story back to your world?
• What responsibilities or changes await you as a result of your journey?

11. Resurrection: Transformation and Influence

Series summary: Leonardo’s death is not an ending, but a resurrection. The series closes with his influence rippling through the centuries-artists, scientists, and dreamers inspired by his legacy. His story is retold and renewed by each generation.

Traveller’s Questions:

• How have you been transformed by your journey?
• What part of your old self must “die” for your new self to emerge?

12. Return with the Elixir: Sharing the Gift

Series summary: Leonardo’s true gift is not just his art or inventions, but his story-a beacon for all who seek to live with passion, curiosity, and courage. The series invites viewers to see their own lives as a hero’s journey, to heed the call to adventure, and to return home ready to lead and inspire.

Traveller’s Questions:

• What “elixir” or wisdom will you bring back to your community?
• How will you use your story to inspire and serve others?

Conclusion: Leonardo’s Story, Your Story

The television series on Leonardo da Vinci, when viewed through Peter de Kuster’s Hero’s Journey model, becomes more than a historical drama. It is a masterclass in storytelling, leadership, and self-discovery6. Leonardo’s journey is a call to action for all of us: to embrace our own adventures, to learn from our doubts, to seek mentors and allies, to face our ordeals with compassion, and to return home ready to share our gifts.

As de Kuster teaches, “The most important story any of us will ever tell, is our own story.” Leonardo’s journey is an invitation to rewrite yours-to become the hero, the magician, the ruler of your own legend.

So as you watch, ask yourself: Where am I on my own Hero’s Journey? And what story do I want to live next?