[3] The story follows the tumultuous life of Prince Kasatsky, a young aristocrat from a prestigious family in 19th-century Tsarist Russia.

This ill-fated romance leads to his downfall: he loses his military rank, resigns as a Guards officer, and retreats to a monastery to become a priest, adopting the name Father Sergius.

Intrigued by Sergius's austere lifestyle, she sets out to seduce him by pretending to be a helpless, freezing woman in need of shelter.

Overcome by the struggle against carnal desire, he takes a drastic step and cuts off one of his fingers in a fit of defiance.

Meanwhile, Kasatsky, now Father Sergius, gains a reputation for holiness among the local peasants, who revere him as a saint, even as idlers mock his piety.