Savitri Devi

Savitri Devi Mukherji (September 30, 1905 — October 22, 1982) was the pseudonym of the Greek writer Maximiani Portas.

She was a pioneering animal-rights activist and proponent of Hinduism and Nazism, synthesizing the two, proclaiming Adolf Hitler to have been sent by Providence, much like an Avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. Her writings have influenced neo-Nazism and Nazi mysticism. Although mystical in her conception of Nazism, Savitri Devi saw Nazism as a practical faith that did not need metaphysics. Among Savitri Devi's ideas was the classifications of "men above time", "men in time" and "men against time". She is credited with pioneering neo-Nazi interest in occultism, Deep Ecology, and the New Age movement. She influenced the Chilean diplomat Miguel Serrano. In 1982, Franco Freda published a German translation of her work Gold in the Furnace, and the fourth volume of his annual review, Risguardo (1980-), was devoted to Savitri Devi as the "missionary of Aryan Paganism".

Her works, in conjunction with those of Julius Evola, have been major influences on activist Bill White. Far-rightist Italian and self-described "Nazi Maoist" Claudio Mutti was influenced by reading her work Pilgrimage as an idealistic teenager. As a young bodyguard for Colin Jordan, David Myatt enthusiastically embraced the values expressed in her work The Lightning and the Sun. In the U.S., National Socialist James Mason (whose Universal Order bears a strong resemblance to the sentiments of Savitri Devi) paid tribute to her in his work, Siege. Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme of the Charles Manson group has endorsed The Lightning and the Sun. Revilo P. Oliver wrote that he saw the potentiality of a future religion venerating Adolf Hitler "in the works of a highly intelligent and learned lady of Greek ancestry, Dr. Savitri Devi."

She was also one of the founding members of the World Union of National Socialists.