[tchaika]

Grew up, Rasputin became a healthy, strong peasant with unbridled nature. For days he worked with his father in the field, and gave himself up to drink in the evenings in the pub and ran to the peasant girls.
At one of the village party, he met his future wife, Praskovia Feodorovna, which fell in love. He married her when he was only 19 years old.
Despite his marriage, he settled down and continued his dissolute life.

Once, while working in the field - the daughter of Rasputin wrote the words of his father - he saw the vision of the Mother of God, which, however, lasted a very short time. Was it a vision real, or just a hallucination after a sleepless night (Rasputin long time suffered from insomnia), no one will ever know. But then he began to pray a lot and meditate on issues of spiritual life.

After some time, Gregory was the coachman to work with post-horses. Sometimes he would take passengers to Tyumen and Tobolsk, sometimes it was a commodity which he carried in different settlements of the Siberian region. One passenger Grigory Rasputin was a seminarian, was headed to the monastery Verkhoturie. On the road between the coachman and the seminary began to talk, and the latter was surprised by how simple peasant could so deeply to know the Scriptures. He persuaded Rasputin live in a monastery, where he was going, and get acquainted with the monastic life.
 
When he returned to Pokrovskoye to him began to come peasant neighbors to learn about his life in Verkhoturye. In the evening they all gathered together and prayed. Grigory prayed aloud, improvising. Then they all sang spiritual songs and psalms.
Soon, Rasputin was born a son, who died in infancy. Gregory was very upset by the death of the child and decided to go on pilgrimages. He went to Athos monastery. In his book, Maria Rasputin wrote that her father "decided to become an elder and go to Mount Athos.

Gregory Went to Mount Athos (from his Siberian village, on foot!) With his friend, a peasant Pecherkina. On reaching the monastery on Mount Athos, Rasputin Pecherkina there were novices. They diligently attend the monastery services, obedience to the work performed, listened to instructions monks. Maria Rasputin writes that her father probably wanted to stay in this monastery and become a monk, but suddenly discovered there's a "sin". Without hesitation, he left the monastery, leaving Pecherkina, who took monastic vows there.
On the way home, and Gregory visited the Holy Land, and, finally, after two years absence, returned to Pokrovskoe. His wife Praskovya barely recognized him: he grew up has changed and stood for hours in prayer in the cellar, a chapel, which arranged for himself near his home. He beat his head on the ground of the earth bow before that the skin on his forehead reddened and cracked. He is also fast pace yourself.

Farmers Pokrovsky gathered around him and listened to his stories about the pilgrimage to holy places.
Priest Pokrovsky, Father Peter was against these meetings, and was indignant to the depths of the soul, when Gregory talked about "sin", which he discovered on Mount Athos.
As his daughter writes, because of its "magnetic force", he enjoyed a special prestige among the villagers, and later could this force to subdue and hundreds of other people. This force, says Mary, came from his extraordinary eyes, blue eyes, eyes that were strange property - the tapered, then expand. This feature of the eye Rasputin had since his childhood. Later, thanks to contemplative meditation, which he worked tirelessly, and post, this property has increased his eyes to the fact that he seemed to be able to watch so that seemed to pierced through and through.

Gregory could not long remain in the Intercession. His restless soul yearned for another journey. Now, he traveled to Kiev, Kazan, and later in St. Petersburg. Probably, in this first visit of Rasputin in the Russian capital and he met with Father John of Kronstadt.