Pakhom was a peasant who believed that with enough land he would fear nothing. Each new holding satisfied him briefly, then made the next one seem necessary.
He eventually heard of the Bashkirs, who offered an extraordinary bargain: for one thousand roubles, he could own all the land he could walk around in a single day. He had to begin at sunrise, mark a circuit, and return to the starting point before sunset. If he failed to return, he would lose the money and receive nothing.
Pakhom set out fast. Every time he meant to turn back, he saw another meadow or field worth including. By afternoon his circuit had become dangerously large. He ran toward the starting hill as the sun fell, exhausted and terrified that all his effort would be wasted.
He reached his cap and the waiting Bashkirs at the final moment, then collapsed. Blood ran from his mouth. He was dead.
His servant dug the grave. The land Pakhom finally needed measured six feet from head to heel.
Source: Leo Tolstoy, “How Much Land Does a Man Need?” in Master and Man and Other Stories, PDF pp. 218-231. Retold and condensed.
What it argues
The appetite for “enough” expands whenever enough is defined by what remains available. Pakhom’s bargain is generous; his inability to stop makes it fatal.
Use it for: greed, lifestyle inflation, overextension, and knowing when to turn back.