Savitri Devi

Born Maximiani Portas in France to a French mother and Greek father, Savitri Devi (a name she adopted later) embraced paganism, animal rights, and eventually, a rather aggressive strain of Hindu nationalism. One might think such spiritual leanings would foster universal love, but in Devi's case, it somehow led straight to Adolf Hitler, whom she considered an avatar of Vishnu. Perhaps the universal love was just for Aryans.

Her philosophical journey took her to India, where she married a Brahmin man, apparently to facilitate her clandestine activities for the Axis powers during World War II. It's quite the romantic tale, if your idea of romance involves ethnic purity and the downfall of democracy. After the war, she tirelessly promoted Nazism and Hindu supremacy, even spending time in prison for distributing pro-Nazi propaganda in Germany.

Savitri Devi's writings are a fascinating, if disturbing, fusion of occultism, Nazism, and environmentalism, all filtered through a lens of extreme racial ideology. Her legacy is a testament to how easily grand spiritual quests can veer into the darkest corners of human thought, proving that even a passionate vegetarian can also be a die-hard Holocaust denier. A true renaissance woman, if "renaissance" means "master of several utterly terrible ideas."