Leonardo da Vinci — "The wise man will want to be rich only in order to be able to help himself and h…"
The wise man will want to be rich only in order to be able to help himself and his friends.
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"The greatest good is that which is desired by all."
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Understanding this quote
What it means
Wealth is only worth pursuing as a means to an end — specifically, to provide for oneself and support those close to you. True wisdom rejects accumulating money for status or power alone. A genuinely smart person treats money as a tool for security and generosity, not a goal in itself. The impulse to hoard or flaunt wealth is, by implication, a mark of foolishness rather than wisdom.
Relevance to Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo spent most of his career under wealthy patrons — the Sforzas in Milan, Cesare Borgia, and finally Francis I of France — trading his art and engineering genius for financial support. He was not driven by personal wealth accumulation but by freedom to pursue his insatiable curiosity across dozens of disciplines. He financially supported apprentices and family members, living this philosophy that wealth serves people, not the reverse.
The era
Leonardo lived in Renaissance Italy (1452–1519), when merchant families like the Medicis wielded enormous political power through accumulated wealth. The era saw fierce tension between Christian ideals of poverty and charity and the new humanist celebration of earthly success. Commerce was booming, inequality stark, and thinkers were actively debating whether wealth corrupted or liberated. This quote joins that Renaissance conversation about what a virtuous person actually does with money.
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