Taoist images and concepts in E. A. Torchinov’s novel The Mysterious Female
EDN: GTNSFP
Abstract
The article examines the literary work of the outstanding Russian sinologist and religious scholar Evgenii Alekseevich Torchinov (1956–2003), namely his novel The Mysterious Female: A Transpersonal Novel. This work can be considered as a kind of popular appendix to the monograph “Religions of the world: The Experience of the Beyond: Psychotechnics and Transpersonal States” (St. Petersburg, 1998). In this monograph, in the section devoted to Taoist psychotechnics, the Mysterious (Innermost) female is understood by the author as the feminine aspect of the absolute (Tao), or even more, the Tao itself is interpreted as a feminine maternal principle, and the ancient sage Lao Tzu is interpreted as the “son” of the Innermost Female, that is, the Tao, or “the personification” of the Tao. The article explores the Taoist images (ideas, concepts, plots) present in the novel. The main one is an image or concept– symbol of a Mysterious (Innermost) female, appearing for the first time in the text of the “Dao De Jing”. As a result, we came to the following conclusions: (1) Taoism is present in the novel primarily as the doctrine of the Mysterious Female (Innermost), identified by the narrator with the teachings of the Shekhinah and Sophia/Ennoia, and (2) as the doctrine of the xian immortals and Taoist alchemy. Thus, Taoism is represented precisely by its most esoteric aspects.
Keywords
E. A. Torchinov,
the novel The Mysterious Female,
Taoism,
the Mysterious (Innermost) female,
Shekhina,
Sofia (Ennoia),
Lao Tzu,
Dao De Jing,
Taoist alchemy.
Supporting agencies: This research is supported by a grant of the Russian Science Foundation, project no. 23-28-01093, https://rscf.ru/project/23-28-01093.
About the Author
P. D. Lenkov
The Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Pavel Dmitrievich Lenkov, Cand. Sci. (History) Assistant Professor, Department of History of Religions and Theology, Institute of History and Social Sciences
191186, Saint Petersburg, Moika River Emb., 48, Corp. 20
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Review
For citations:
Lenkov P.D. Taoist images and concepts in E. A. Torchinov’s novel The Mysterious Female. Shagi / Steps. 2025;11(3):125-142. (In Russ.) EDN: GTNSFP
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