In 1886 Balmont graduated from the much hated gymnasium ("It completely ruined my nervous system." he remembered in 1923). and enrolled in Moscow State University to study law. There he became involved with a group of leftist activists and was arrested for taking part in student unrest. He spent three days in jail, was expelled from the University, and returned home to Shuya. In 1889 Balmont returned to the University but soon quit again after suffering a nervous breakdown. He joined the Demidov Law College in Yaroslavl but dropped out in September 1890 deciding he'd had enough formal education. "I simply couldn't bring myself to study law, what with living so intensely through the passions of my heart," he wrote in 1911. In February 1889 he married Larisa Mikhailovna Garelina; unhappy in marriage, on 13 March 1890 Balmont attempted suicide by jumping from a third-story window, leaving him with a limp and an injured writing hand for the rest of his life. The year he spent recuperating from his suicide attempt became a turning point for Balmont, who, in his words, experienced 'extraordinary mental agitation' and envisaged his 'poetic mission.'