Arturo Reghini


Arturo Reghini was an Italian mathematician, philosopher and esotericist.

Biography

Reghini edited the journals Atanór and Ignis devoted to initiate studies, covering topics such as Pythagoreanism, yoga, Hebrew Cabalism and the Freemasonry of Alessandro Cagliostro. A circle of esotericists formed around these journals and adopted the name Gruppo di Ur. The group's members included Julius Evola and the anthroposophists Giovanni Colazza and Giovanni Antonio Colonna di Cesarò. From 1927 to 1928 the group published the monthly journal UR. Reghini fell out with Evola and the Ur group in 1928; a major reason was Reghini's support for Freemasonry, which was not in line with the direction the journal had taken. Reghini left the editorial board and UR was discontinued. It was briefly replaced in 1929 by a journal named Krur, without Reghini's involvement.
Reghini was opposed to Christianity, which he associated with modernity and egalitarianism, and sought to establish a form of modern Paganism he called "magia colta", "cultured magic", which he drew from Hermeticism and Platonism. A critic of democracy and an advocate for the ancient Roman aristocracy, Reghini welcomed the rise of Italian Fascism, which he associated with the ancient world. He wrote in Atanór in 1924 that he had anticipated the emergence of such a regime in Italy 15 years prior.

Legacy

Reghini was an important influence on Evola during the years 1924 to 1930. He introduced Evola to the major texts on alchemy, which became the basis for Evola's book The Hermetic Tradition. It was also through Reghini that Evola met René Guénon, whose Traditionalism would have a profound impact on his thinking. Reghini's journals and the works of the Ur group has influenced the development of Italic-Roman neopaganism and Roman Polytheistic Reconstructionism.