The relatively faint murmur of the thousands of tourists who visit the Louvre in Paris every day rises to a crescendo when they enter the gallery that houses what is arguably the most famous painting ever made. At first, its small dimensions when compared to the grand narrative take you by surprise. But a few steps closer and the mysterious smile of the Mona Lisa disarms you from behind the strongest of bullet-proof glasses. Many have called the enigmatic beauty of the painting a microcosm of the enigma of its creator itself. For, five centuries after Leonardo da Vinci died, the artist, sculptor, scientist, inventor and naturalist continues to intrigue writers, researchers and the world of pop culture.

In the month of his 500th death anniversary — da Vinci died on May 2, 1519 — New Acropolis Mumbai, an international organisation of philosophy and culture founded in 1957 in Buenos Aires, is organising a talk on him that aims to tie together the many facets of the polymath’s personality and shed light on how lessons from da Vinci, who celebrated the beauty of nature and man, can inform us even today.