Grigori Rasputin Accomplishments

Grigori Rasputin did not live very long but his life was indeed very interesting. Over and over again, his life is described as “sorted” with three major emphases: his sexual exploits, his unorthodox behavior and his untimely death. Very little effort has been made to describe and discuss the impact that he had on Russia’s’ efforts during World War I. Although World War I was significant to the development of post war occurrences and ultimately today’s society, Rasputin was a key player but only to be noted as the cause or demise of the political party and himself. Originally born Grigori Yefimovich Novik on January 22, 1869 in Pokrovskoye, Siberia, Russia, Grigori Yefimovich Novik changed his name to Grigori Rasputin. He was the …show more content…
Becoming a peasant was in contradiction to how he actually grew up. Rasputin dropped out of school in the 8th grade having really never learned to read or write proficiently. Rasputin became and lived as a peasant and described himself as a monk or holy man. Rasputin entered the monastery but did not complete the rite of passage to obtain such an orthodox title. He however adapted the title after only pursuing the profession for only three months. Rasputin came to be known as the “mad monk” throughout his short life span. The name Rasputin has two questionable meanings but each are in contradiction to the idea of what a monk would command. The initial meaning of Rasputin is “promiscuous and unprincipled in sexual matters as defined in the dictionary (2). Even at a young age, Rasputin earned himself the reputation for devoted debauchery that his actual name was replaced with Rasputin which is Russian for debauched one. As historians have researched the name in more depth, it is now defned as potentially meaning “archaic which translates to mean disregarding accepted rules or conventions, especially in grammar or literary style.” Although both of these definitions are dissimilar in nature, they both are accurate descriptions of how Rasputin lived a portion of his life. A third more plausible definition is a split in the river that ran through the city where …show more content…
His mother died when he was young and his father was imprisoned for periods of time. Rasputin was arrested for theft at the age of 16 which led to the community in which he resided to request for him to be excommunicated and exiled. He was initially sentenced to 3 months of incarceration but it was commuted to serving his arrest condition at Verkhoturye Monastery in Siberia. Upon his release, Rasputin lived with a monk by the name of Makariy. They lived in a minimalistic hut and practiced rituals akin to “ancient shamanic and tribal traditions of the Siberian people.” Through sparse writing of Rasputin, he noted that Makariy had cured him of a severe sleep disorder and trained him to practice hypnotism and adapt a vegetarian lifestyle. This included some alcohol consumption and the use of various weeds and drugs for “spiritual transformation” that is closely associated with ancient shamans and the practice of shamanism