Evgeny Torchinov

Torchinov died on July 12, 2003, in Saint Petersburg.

In 1994, he defended his second doctoral dissertation entitled "Taoism: An attempt of historical-religious description". In 1998, he became the Chair of Philosophy of Religion and Religious Studies at St. Petersburg State University, and in 1999 created and led as the chair of Oriental Philosophy and Cultures.

Torchinov began to consider himself a Buddhist in 1975. He was the official representative in Russia and a member of the Board of directors of, consultant and laic Buddhist lecturer for Buddha's Light International Association, and president of St. Petersburg Buddhist association Fo Guan (Buddha's Light). Torchinov called himself off-sect Buddhist.

Evgeny Torchinov (Russian Евгений Алексеевич Торчинов), (August 22, 1956 – July 12, 2003), was a Russian sinologist, Buddhist scholar, professor, and translator. He was best known as an eminent Russian researcher of ancient Chinese religion and philosophy, author of many books and translations of classical Chinese texts (especially Buddhist and Taoist) into Russian. He founded the chair of Eastern philosophy and cultures at St. Petersburg State University.

Evgeny Torchinov was born on August 22, 1956, in the city of Ordzhonikidze (then USSR), and soon his family moved to Saratov. After graduation from high-school in 1973, Torchinov was admitted to the Faculty of Oriental Studies of Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) State University, where he majored in Chinese philology. After graduation in 1978, he became a Ph.D. candidate at the State Museum of History of Religion and Atheism, where he worked as a research fellow from 1981 to 1984. From 1984 and until 1994, he worked as researcher at the St.Petersburg branch of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Academy of Sciences.