St. Paul was born into a noble family near Moscow. When his parents arranged a marriage for him, he secretly left his family home and entered a distant monastery. Some time later he moved to the Monastery of the Holy Trinity to become a disciple of St. Sergius of Radonezh. Under the direction of St. Sergius, he made great progress in unceasing prayer of the heart. The elder blessed him to retire to a hermitage near the monastery, and he lived there 15 years.
