Ida Vassalini | |
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| Born | 1 November 1891 Verona, Italy |
| Died | 21 December 1953 (aged 62) Milan, Italy |
| Occupation(s) | Teacher, philosopher, pacifist, and poet |
Ida Vassalini (1 November 1891 – 21 December 1953) was an Italian teacher, philosopher, pacifist, and poet. She was born and raised in Verona, before moving to Milan to further her education. Earning a degree in philology from the University of Padua and another in philosophy from the University of Milan, Vassalini became a teacher at several high schools in and around Milan and contributed to various literary and social journals. A committed pacifist, although not a feminist, she became the head of the Milanese branch of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) from 1922 to 1927, but left when the organization did not oppose the execution of Sacco and Vanzetti.
Many of Vassalini's works focused on Asian studies, in particular, translating Indian religious texts into Italian like the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and the Dhammapada. She wrote poetry and literary critiques of other philosophers, including Giuseppe Rensi, Arthur Schopenhauer, and Rabindranath Tagore. Her original works produced a fusion of Eastern philosophy and Christian teachings, which mirrored her own beliefs that the Eastern and Western worlds should unite to achieve social justice. She was an anti-Communist, anti-fascist, and anti-nationalist, who believed that intellectual pursuits should not be influenced by religion or politics.