A Different Da Vinci Code

A DIFFERENT DA VINCI CODE

THE MISSING PIECES OF

LEONARDO'S PUZZLE POINT TO PLAIN AND SIMPLE HERMETICISM

"A Conversation with Professor Nemo"

Overview

The intellectual influence of Renaissance Hermeticism on art, rather than a depiction of Mary Magdalene at the Last Supper, is the basis for A Different da Vinci Code. This is an alternative explanation of Leonardo's symbolism, which proposes the typical use of transgender figures in various artworks of the period as a veiled reference to the alchemical androgyne (cf. Sophia/Baphomet), representing the keenly anticipated rebirth of classical knowledge and culture. Similarly, Leonardo's use of the up-pointed finger of Mercury/Hermes, also referred to as the John Gesture, is proposed to denote the universal Hermetic motto, "As above; so below." Finally, it is proposed that the manner in which this symbolism is used in the artist's works also supports by illustration the contention that Leonardo may have, at some point in his life, championed the Johannite cult of Gnosticism, frequently associated with the Knights Templar, rather than the Cathar cult of Mary Magdalene as alleged by others.

Chi disputa allegando l'autorità, non adopra l'ingegno, ma piuttosto la memoria.

~Leonardo da Vinci

(Whoever refers to authorities in disputing ideas, works with his memory rather than with his reason.)

Dialog

Q: Why did Leonardo da Vinci depict the Apostle John in his The Last Supper as feminine? Is Dan Brown right in suggesting in The Da Vinci Code that it represents a wifely Mary Magdalene? And why do we see so many of Leonardo's art figures pointing up?

A: The figure that Leonardo da Vinci depicts in his Last Supper is neither solely John the Apostle nor solely Mary Magdalene, but a typical androgyne representation of a mysterious character revered for eons and fully conceptualized long before Mary Magdalene ever drew breath… We simply need to take a closer look at the same secret Hermetic/Gnostic traditions that have gotten so much attention recently from this very controversy. Of these two related traditions, Hermeticism is particularly ignored or only poorly understood today although it pervades our culture through and through. It can, however, quickly and easily explain Leonardo's substitution.

Q: Why would Leonardo want to substitute a totally different character?

A: Many in the Renaissance movement loved science, sought knowledge and were repelled by the corrupt, luxurious, ignorant and highly inquisitorial churchmen of their day. The Hermeticist dreams nostalgically of a mythic golden age of peace, wisdom and technological wonders in a lost ancient past. It might be called Atlantis, Lemuria, Shamballa, or just the Golden Age. The movement has always been shrouded in secrecy and has used coded symbols when necessary to protest against hostile powers-that-be.

Q: But didn't working for the Church represent Leonardo's livelihood and pay his bills?

A: Yes, but like other great artists, Leonardo worked at servant status, often for a wealthy patron, and he had to put up with plenty of b.s. from a religious overseer that he did not respect and delighted in bearding with hidden jabs.

Q: How did he do that without being found out?

A: He used code in his art that only like-minded Hermeticists would recognize, and he's gotten away with it for centuries! That same feminine angel so sharply counterpoised in a V shape as if in protest against the figure of Jesus in The Last Supper can be seen elsewhere as well. Look carefully , for example, at St. Anne in Leonardo's sketch

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Related Resources:

• The Da Vinci Code
• Hermeticism, Alchemy, and Rosicrucianism
• The Emerald Tablet
• Hermes Trismegistos

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