Righteous Paul of Taganrog was born on November 8, 1792, to Pavel Stozhkov, a nobleman in the Krolevetsky district of Chernigov province. At baptism, he was named in honor of St. Paul the Confessor. His parents wanted to provide their son with an education and a good social position, but the young man strove for salvation and a God-pleasing life through prayer and pilgrimage to holy places. At age 25, following the Lord's words: "...sell all that thou hast and distribute to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven" ( Luke 18:22 ), blessed Paul distributed his inherited estate, freed the peasants, and, with his father's blessing, set out on his cherished pilgrimage to the holy monasteries, hoping to find rest for his soul under their protection.
His wandering life lasted for about ten years, and then he settled in the coastal city of Taganrog, where, forgetting his noble origins, he spoke the common Little Russian dialect and lived in a dugout. Through hard labor at the port and tireless prayer, he cleansed his soul and body of all passion and sin. God's grace clearly rested upon him, and he illuminated many with his righteous life. Involuntarily, people, impressed by his words and deeds, reflected more deeply on the meaning of life and remembered their Heavenly Fatherland. They began to turn to him for advice and consolation.
Having reached his advanced years, he abandoned his arduous labors at the port and settled in a small house, praying unceasingly to God and serving the people. Every day, with the first ring of the church bell, he went to the cathedral, prayed at the Liturgy, and trimmed the lamps, for which he carried a small stool with him and a white towel over his shoulders, with which he wiped the holy icons. From the church, Blessed Paul, as usual, walked through the market. Hanging two white linen bags, with a stick in his hand, he made the rounds of all the merchants with his usual instructions and consolations. The merchants gave him alms, but from some he refused all alms and even drove them away with his stick. As before, he spent his nights in fervent, kneeling prayer. The Jesus Prayer never left his lips. He taught everyone who came to him to recite this prayer and never allowed anyone into his cell without it. Pavel Pavlovich loved churches and often donated icons, lamps, candles, oil, and other items to them. He taught faithfulness in small things, instilled a love for the sacred objects of the church, and transferred this reverent attitude to objects that sanctified a person's life in the world: prosphora, incense, and candles.
The common people found in the blessed one a holy elder of great virtue. Established in a blameless life, according to the law of the Lord, Blessed Paul was like a lamp on earth, shining with good deeds. He received from the Lord the gift of healing and clairvoyance. And people came to him with their sorrows, troubles, and questions. Many came to the blessed one and begged him to allow them to stay with him, so that the words of the psalmist might be fulfilled in them: "With the holy man you will be holy, and with the blameless man you will be blameless: and with the chosen you will be chosen" ( Psalm 18:26-27 ). And he allowed some to live with him, as if in obedience.
Having sacrificed his estates to God, Blessed Paul often sacrificed the fruits of his noble upbringing and education for Christ, and under a veneer of feigned rudeness, he skillfully concealed his elevated and noble soul. If a visitor with unrepentant sins were to come to Blessed Paul, the blessed one, without embarrassing the visitor with a rude revelation of his secrets, would feign an attack on one of his novices: he would scold, berate, and threaten them with a stick, all the while naming the visitor's sins in an attempt to spur them to repentance. The novice, however, meekly endures and merely repeats, "Forgive me, Father, I am guilty."
By the power of God's grace, the blessed one clearly foresaw both the soul of man and his future. He predicted to his spiritual father, Hieromonk Damian: "You will be a great man, such that no greater can come." And these prophetic words were indeed fulfilled in Father Damian's life: in 1897, he was appointed Patriarch of the Holy City of Jerusalem.
As he approached the end of his earthly life, the blessed one's physical strength increasingly weakened, but his holy soul remained ablaze with love for God and his neighbors. As with other great saints of God, the Lord revealed to him the day and hour of his death. The day before, he commanded that a letter be written to his loved ones asking them to attend his funeral.
He died on March 10, 1879. That evening, he became extremely weak and, having received the Holy Mysteries of Christ from his spiritual father, Father Damian, he commended his righteous soul to God. At the moment of his death, all those present saw the face of the saint of God illuminated with great joy. A yellowish shadow passed from his grace-filled head down his entire body to his feet, and then his body became as white as snow. All who witnessed this sign of God's grace upon Blessed Paul were touched in their hearts and glorified God for His mercy.
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Instructions for salvation from Blessed Paul of Taganrog
The elder Paul's instructions to people embarking on the path to salvation were the fruit of his blessed life in Christ, an exposition of his own spiritual experience, gained through the ascetic feats of fasting, prayer, abstinence, and the Christian virtues of love for the poor, mercy, veneration of holy things, and love for divine services.
His instructions were especially powerful because people knew and saw that the righteous man himself carried out everything he advised others to do, pleasing God, growing spiritually, and acquiring the gifts of God's grace. It was precisely for his lofty spiritual life that the Lord endowed His saint and chosen one with the gifts of clairvoyance, healing, and miracles.
These instructions have come down to us in the memoirs of people who lived near and interacted with the saint, whom the blessed one guided toward a God-pleasing life. From these numerous testimonies, the instructions of Blessed Paul of Taganrog have been compiled.
About fasting and prayer
Always pray to God. Seek comfort and pleasure in prayer. For the sake of prayer, give up sleep and food. Consider prayerful vigil the most blessed time.
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Pray for others.
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Pray strongly and persistently.
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Don't lose heart when you stumble and commit a sin, but pray fervently so as not to repeat it. And if you do, pray again, pray always.
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Always say the Jesus Prayer.
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Attend church services frequently, especially on holidays and Sundays.
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Above all sacrifices, honor the Bloodless Sacrifice, offered in churches for our sins according to the institution of our Lord Jesus Christ.
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Fast often, confess and receive the Holy Mysteries of Christ.
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Fast and make do with little.
On the commandments of God and Christian virtues
Don't lie.
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Do not steal.
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Do not grieve over the loss of property.
Cultivate obedience in yourself
(He considered obedience one of the most important Christian virtues. He severely punished his novices and visitors for disobedience. He loved to repeat that obedience is superior to fasting and prayer.)
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Observe Sundays and holidays, as the Bible commands. Avoid doing any household chores or preparing food.
(He did not allow his novices to accept things and food donations that were made on Sundays and holidays.)
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Overcome laziness.
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Love spiritual purity more than physical purity, strive for it with all the strength of the soul, and maintain it unceasingly with good deeds, labors and prayers.
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Humble yourself before God and people.
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Remember that our life does not depend on external circumstances, but on the will of God, the decrees of God.
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Rely not on your own strength, but on God’s help.
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To act according to the will of God.
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Always act according to your conscience and do not value any thing if it was acquired dishonestly and to the detriment of your peace of conscience.
On Christian Piety
Before starting any business, ask for God's blessing.
Always thank God and the Most Holy Theotokos for the mercies shown to us, sinners and unworthy.
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Always cross yourself, especially before going to bed.
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Prepare food with God's blessing and prayer, believing that only then will the food be tasty and healthy.
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Donate for the needs of temples, for their decoration.
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To revere the shrines and icons.
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Always have icons, incense, candles and wood oil in your home.
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Donate to people things that are useful for prayer and Christian piety: icons, oil for lamps, incense, prosphora.
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Always light lamps in front of icons at home.
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Ensure the safety of sacred objects. Prevent the loss of sacred items such as crosses, prosphora, and others.
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Of all weekdays, especially honor Friday—the day of the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ for our sins. Avoid housework and cooking.
To bow, thereby expressing love and humility before the Lord Jesus Christ, His Most Pure Mother, the holy saints of God, and deep reverence for the Holy Scriptures.
(Showing how important it is for a Christian to bow, he sometimes even gave money to his visitors and novices for diligently bowing, as a lesson to others.)
On mercy to one's neighbor
Do not spare money for acts of mercy.
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Do not acquire what is unnecessary for yourself, always share with your neighbor.
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Do not refuse the poor and the needy, always give alms, remembering that perhaps Jesus Christ Himself has come to you.
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Feed and water everyone, and help as much as you can.
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Treat prisoners with compassion and help them in their needs.
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Don't spare time for godly deeds.
About visiting holy places
Make pilgrimages to holy places.
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With God's help, overcome the obstacles erected by the evil one on the path to holiness, and do not succumb to the wiles of the enemy of man, who stands in the way of a person doing good.
To wander in such a way as to endure fasting, labor, and hardships.
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To ask for bread for Christ's sake during a pilgrimage, saying that whoever does not ask for Christ's sake is not a pilgrim.
On the commemoration of the departed
Commemorate deceased Orthodox Christians, especially parents.
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Commemorate him, the elder Paul, a holy ascetic for Christ’s sake and a saint of God.
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Visit his grave and his cell. Turn to him for prayerful help even after his death, with all kinds of needs, troubles, and illnesses.
Source: https://azbyka.org/otechnik/Zhitija_svjatykh/ot-zemli-do-neba-chudesa-i-zhitie-blazhennogo-pavla-taganrogskogo