Upon entering the Engineering School, at the insistence of his parents, Dimitri was appointed a boarder of Her Majesty the Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, then still the Grand Duchess, and besides, he enjoyed the special favor of Emperor Nicholas Pavlovich.

Every Saturday we confessed, and on Sunday we communed of the Holy Mysteries. After graduating from the course of science, Dimitri became an officer, and I still remained a cadet at the school.

The first time he appeared as an officer to the Grand Duke, he heard him reproach him: "You pray to God a lot, we will give you a task."

June 9, 1870

They met Fr. Seraphim and other monks of the Valaam metochion, which was in Kolomna, where they often went to services and for confession and communion; they talked about the benefit of the soul and listened to their instructions.

In the Nevsky Lavra, we met the disciples of Fr. Leonid, an experienced elder who received a monastic education from the disciples of Paisius of Moldavia himself. At that time there were three of them: Fathers Aaron, Ioannicius and Chariton.

We diligently read the books of the Holy Fathers: Demetrius of Rostov, John Chrysostom, the Philokalia, the Ladder and others, drawing from them a way of thinking, spiritual reason and ways to save the soul.

His Eminence Metropolitan Seraphim [Glagolevsky] was told that two officers often go to the Lavra, one of them is a person known to the Emperor, and the spiritual father of the Lavra persuades him to become a monk, and that the Tsar does not like this very much. The confessor was reprimanded and forbidden to receive us. Dimitri Alexandrovich regretted his spiritual father and in the sorrow of his heart was going to explain himself to Vladyka.

Fr. Leonid arrived in St. Petersburg; got to know him. After the first conversation, Dimitri said: "Fr. Leonid tore my heart out of me, and now the matter has been decided. I am going to ask for my resignation from the service and will follow the Elder; I will surrender to him with all my soul and will seek my salvation only in solitude."

After the departure of the Elder to the Alexander Svirsky Monastery, we corresponded with him. After graduating from the course in the upper officer class, the comrade submitted a request for dismissal from service, due to poor health. The Emperor was pleased to instruct the Grand Duke Mikhail Pavlovich to persuade him not to leave the service, which is why he was ordered to appear at the Mikhailovsky Palace, where the Grand Duke, in the presence of Count Oppermann, the chief commander of all military educational institutions, tested him for a long time: why was he leaving the service? Does he want to decide on staff affairs? Does he want to go to a monastery? Is it not more glorious to be saved in the world? does he wish to choose some place in Southern Russia to improve his health? And all this because the Tsar does not want to dismiss him, Brianchaninov.

It was decided to send Demetrius to the fortress of Dinaburg, where he spent a whole year, mostly in illness. I entered the Sapper Training Battalion.

A year has passed. The Grand Duke visited Dinaburg. My friend again submitted his resignation. The Grand Duke sent his adjutant to him to say that a place useful to the State had been prepared for him, but since there was no law to forcibly keep him in the service, so he dismissed him. Having received a decree of resignation, Brianchaninov arrived in St. Petersburg and hurried to leave for the Alexander Svirsky Monastery, to the elder Fr. Leonid. From here, almost a year later, the Elder with all his disciples moved to the Ploshchanskaya hermitage, Oryol province, Sevsk district. Passing through, he stopped in Petersburg, and my friend stayed with me.

From the notes of Mikhail Vasilyevich Chikhachev [1536]