Marco Pasi is Associate Professor (UHD) in History of Hermetic philosophy and related currents. He holds a Laurea degree in Philosophy from the University of Milan, and a DEA and a PhD in Religious studies from the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes (Sorbonne, Paris). He has focused his research mainly on the relationship between modern esotericism and politics, modern esotericism and art, the history of the idea of magic, and on methodological issues related to the study of western esotericism. He is the editor in chief of the Aries Book Series (Brill), founding member of the European Society for the Study of Western Esotericism (ESSWE). He has been co-chair of the Western Esotericism Group at the American Academy of Religion (AAR) and the General Secretary of the European Association for the Study of Religions (EASR).

NEW BOOK

Marco Pasi, Aleister Crowley and the Temptation of Politics

Acumen Publishing, 238 pp.

ISBN 978-1844656967 

Aleister Crowley (1875-1947) is one of the most famous and significant authors in the history of western esotericism. Crowley has been long ignored by scholars of religion whilst the stories of magical and sexual practice which circulate about him continue to attract popular interest. Aleister Crowley and the Temptation of Politics looks at the man behind the myth – by setting him firmly within the politics of his time – and the development of his ideas through his extensive and extraordinarily varied writings. Crowley was a rationalist, sympathetic to the values of the Enlightenment, but also a romantic and a reactionary. His search for an alternative way to express his religious feelings led him to elaborate his own vision of social and political change. Crowley’s complex politics led to his involvement with many key individuals, organisations and groups of his day – the secret service of various countries, the German Nazi party, Russian political activists, journalists and politicians of various persuasions, as well as other writers – both in Europe and America. Aleister Crowley and the Temptation of Politics presents a life of ideas, an examination of a man shaped by and shaping the politics of his times.

Kabbalah and Modernity: Interpretations, Transformations, Adaptations , edited by Boaz Huss, Marco Pasi, and Kocku von Stuckrad

ISBN-13: 978 90 04 18284 4

The persistence of kabbalistic groups in the twentieth century has largely been ignored or underestimated by scholars of religion. Only recently have scholars began to turn their attention to the many-facetted roles that kabbalistic doctrines and schools have played in nineteenth- and twentieth-century culture. Often, and necessarily, this new interest andopenness went along with a contextualization and re-valuation of earlier scholarly approaches to kabbalah. This volume brings together leading representativesof this ongoing debate in order to break new ground for a better understanding and conceptualization of the role of kabbalah in modern religious, intellectual, and political discourse.

Marco Pasi (ed.), Peintures Inconnues d'Aleister Crowley . La Collection de Palerme , Milan , Archè, 2008.

ISBN-13: 978-8872522899

Fondateur d'unenouvelle religion, magicien, poète, peintre, Aleister Crowley (1875-1947) s'installe dans les années 1920 à Cefalù, où il fonde son Abbaye de Théléma. La série de peintures présentées ici, objet d'une exposition au Palais de Tokyo, a été découverte il y a quelques années dans un village proche de Cefalù. Elle explicite l'importance de l'image et du symbole dans le domaine occulte. Son étude atteste entre autres de son lien avec le jeu de Thoth, tarot conçu par Crowley vingt ans plus tard (1938- 1942). Entre visions oniriques et hallucinations psychotropes, utopie d'un paradis primitif, l'ensemble de l'oeuvre de Crowley a influencé la contre-culture autant que la musique pop. La découverte de ces peintures est l'occasion d'interroger la complexité de cet héritage.

Teaching

University of Amsterdam

- Hermetica I: Inleiding westerse esoterie, BA course (2006-2010).

- Hermetica III/IV: Western Esotericism since the Enlightenment, BA course (2004-2016).

- "Occult Trajectories", MA course (2005 ['Magic and Modernity'], 2006 ['Women and gender issues in modern western esotericism'], 2007 ['Modern western esotericism and politics'], 2008 ['Western esotericism in the mirror of modern literature'], 2009 ['The esoteric in modern and contemporary art', with Tessel Bauduin]), 2010 ['A troubled relationship: Esotericism and modern science', with Egil Asprem], 2011 ['Modern western esotericism and Orientalism'], 2013 ['Modern western esotericism, secret societies and conspiracy theories'], 2014 ['Modern western esotericism and politics', with Christian J. Greer], 2015 [‘Magic and Modernity’], 2016 ['Modern western esotericism and politics'].

- "Methods and Theory in the Study of Religion", MA course (2006-2015).

University of Cagliari

- "Tradizioni filosofiche e tradizioni esoteriche e magiche aconfronto", MA course (2010).

Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes

- "La notion de magie dans le courant occultiste anglo-saxon (1875-1914) : approches historiques et méthodologiques" (2001-2002).

- "La construction d'un système magique dans l'occultisme anglais (1875-1900)" (2003-2004).

ETH Zürich

- “La religione dei moderni: figure dello spirituale nella cultura italiana tra Ottocento e Novecento”, graduate course (2014-2015).

Study-guides of current courses

Methods and Theory in the Study of Religion

2013-2014

Occult Trajectories

2013-2014

Western esotericism from the 18th to the 20th century

2015-2016

Personal page on Academia.edu

Centre for the History of Hermetic philosophy and related currents

European Association for the Study of Religions (EASR)

European Society for the Study of Western Esotericism (ESSWE)

Western Esotericism group at the American Academy of Religion  

International Association for the History of Religions (IAHR)

Aries Book Series at Brill Academic Publishers  

Gustav Meyrink and His Esoteric Novels. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VII

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

Gustav Meyrink and His Esoteric Novels. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VII

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical movement. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VIII, part 1

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical movement. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VIII, part 2

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical Movement and the Construction of Esoteric Ethnic Identities in Italy (1890-1915)

A paper presented at the conference "Theosophical Appropriations: Kabbalah, Western Esotericism and the Transformation of Traditions" (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, 16-18/12/2013)

Bodily fluids

A lecture presented at the Copenhagen Art Festival 2012

The Theosophical movement. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VIII, part 1

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

Gustav Meyrink and His Esoteric Novels. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VII

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical movement. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VIII, part 1

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical movement. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VIII, part 2

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical Movement and the Construction of Esoteric Ethnic Identities in Italy (1890-1915)

A paper presented at the conference "Theosophical Appropriations: Kabbalah, Western Esotericism and the Transformation of Traditions" (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, 16-18/12/2013)

Bodily fluids

A lecture presented at the Copenhagen Art Festival 2012

The Theosophical movement. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VIII, part 2

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

Gustav Meyrink and His Esoteric Novels. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VII

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical movement. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VIII, part 1

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical movement. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VIII, part 2

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical Movement and the Construction of Esoteric Ethnic Identities in Italy (1890-1915)

A paper presented at the conference "Theosophical Appropriations: Kabbalah, Western Esotericism and the Transformation of Traditions" (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, 16-18/12/2013)

Bodily fluids

A lecture presented at the Copenhagen Art Festival 2012

The Theosophical Movement and the Construction of Esoteric Ethnic Identities in Italy (1890-1915)

A paper presented at the conference "Theosophical Appropriations: Kabbalah, Western Esotericism and the Transformation of Traditions" (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, 16-18/12/2013)

Gustav Meyrink and His Esoteric Novels. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VII

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical movement. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VIII, part 1

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical movement. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VIII, part 2

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical Movement and the Construction of Esoteric Ethnic Identities in Italy (1890-1915)

A paper presented at the conference "Theosophical Appropriations: Kabbalah, Western Esotericism and the Transformation of Traditions" (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, 16-18/12/2013)

Bodily fluids

A lecture presented at the Copenhagen Art Festival 2012

Bodily fluids

A lecture presented at the Copenhagen Art Festival 2012

Gustav Meyrink and His Esoteric Novels. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VII

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical movement. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VIII, part 1

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical movement. A webinar for the Infinite Fire series, n. VIII, part 2

Produced by the Ritman Library in cooperation with the HHP centre at the University of Amsterdam

The Theosophical Movement and the Construction of Esoteric Ethnic Identities in Italy (1890-1915)

A paper presented at the conference "Theosophical Appropriations: Kabbalah, Western Esotericism and the Transformation of Traditions" (Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, 16-18/12/2013)

Bodily fluids

A lecture presented at the Copenhagen Art Festival 2012