The cult of Pushkin, begun in the late nineteenth century and adopted by the Soviet regime, continues to be worshipped in Russia to the present day: by the state, by the people, and especially by the intelligentsia. This article explores the phenomenon of Pushkin’s cult as reflected in Tatyana Tolstaya’s short stories, essays, and novel The Slynx [Kys’] (2000). The authors aim to prove that, although Tostaya’s attitude towards this phenomenon has been consistently ironic, she nevertheless retains some genuine quasi-religious beliefs in Pushkin herself.