Harry Potter's Invitation to the World
by Vickie Ewell
Chapter 33 – Harry Confronts Draco in the Air (HP Chapter 9)
Draco jumped onto his broomstick and took off. Hovering at the uppermost branches of an oak tree, he taunted Harry to come and get the Remembrall. This reflected the way the subtle snake in the Garden of Eden tempted Eve to eat from the forbidden tree. The situation had evolved from being about Neville to being a contest of Will between him and Harry. Draco didn’t believe it would be much of a contest, though.
Despite his initial emotional outburst, Harry stopped to consider the situation realistically. He was no longer acting mechanically. Draco really does know how to fly well, but Harry grabbed his broomstick anyway. He was now reacting out of instinct more than anything else.
My own spiritual tradition teaches that Eve was not deceived by the snake. She knew exactly what she was doing, and why. It was better for her children to experience duality and thereby come to know God and love, than it was to remain in their innocent state of not knowing. However, the fall did bring consequences to our mental condition that we need to recover from before we can find our way home.
Hermione didn’t understand what was at stake for Harry if he didn’t retrieve Neville’s Remembrall from Draco. She only knew that Harry’s actions were creating fear and dread for her. She was reacting within her own mechanical conditioning and upbringing. “No!” she shouted. “Madam Hooch told us not to move – you’ll get us all into trouble.”
There are six basic rules that influence our unconscious behavior. Interestingly, Hermione’s reaction and attempt at controlling Harry’s behavior embraces all six. Calling attention to Madam Hooch’s threat of expulsion to those who touched any of the brooms was Hermione’s belief that she and everyone else must do as Hermione’s authorities tell them to do.
Obviously, what Hermione tells Harry wasn’t true. Madam Hooch would never hold Hermione and the others accountable for something Harry did, so Harry chose to ignore her criticism and threat. He was functioning at a higher level of reality than Hermione was, even though his feet had not yet left the ground. We know that because he’s having an unnatural reaction: blood was pounding in his ears. That wasn’t something that occurs on the physical plane.
Harry soared into the air. He found flying easy. That brought a rush of happiness, because he had finally found something he would not have to be taught. Flying was something he already knew how to do. What we have learned in previous lifetimes comes relatively easy for us.
Harry turned toward a shocked Draco. Undoubtedly, Draco thought he’d be able to humiliate Harry in front of his friends the same way Snape had in class, but he was wrong. At this higher level of being, Harry had switched from victim to aggressor. “Give it here,” Harry warned, “or I’ll knock you off your broom!” Harry charged Draco who barely got out of the way in time. “No Crabbe and Goyle up here to save your neck, Malfoy,” Harry taunted.
At this higher level, Harry saw Draco more clearly. He was no longer the boy who timidly stood next to him when being fitted for his robes. Something had changed internally. Draco apparently understood that, and with fear and desperation, he threw the Remembrall into the air daring Harry to catch it.
The confrontation had evolved beyond a contest of Wills. This was a defensive move for Draco, not malicious intent against Neville, although that’s how it began. At this point, Draco was literally afraid for his life. He threw the ball, hoping Harry would chase after it, so he could streak back toward the ground to safety.
There is nothing that happens to us by accident. Everything works according to God’s Plan. There are certainly superficial events that don’t matter in the larger view of eternity, but everything works together to bring to pass the greater good. Draco’s malicious nature worked to Harry’s advantage as well as Harry’s need to defend and rescue others.
Hermione’s attempt at controlling Harry tested his readiness to become a Seeker. When Draco and Harry met head on in the air, Harry discovered his strongest talent, but he also found the key that would help him move forward on his path.
Harry watched the ball travel in slow motion. That is what happens when the body sees danger and floods with adrenaline: everything around you moves in slow motion. Although Draco had returned to the ground, Harry was still functioning at a higher level of consciousness.
When the ball began to fall, Harry chased after it. About a foot above the ground, he reached out and snatched the Remembrall from the air, pulled his broom straight, and then toppled gently into the grass. Here, the color green symbolizes a new beginning for Harry, but actually catching the Remembrall won’t happen until Book 2. The Etheric level is when we learn about our emotions, the connection our past has to our present state, and what we need to do to wash away a good portion of our conditioning.
When Harry came to rest, the ball was tightly clutched in his fist. It was a glorious moment for him. He had triumphed over his fears and inadequacies as well as Draco, but that feeling of success quickly died when he heard Professor McGonagall’s voice. “HARRY POTTER!” She was running towards him. “Never – in all of my time at Hogwarts –“ She was having trouble getting the words out. He could have broken his neck.
Parvarti Patil and Ron started to stick up for Harry rights by explaining the situation, but Professor McGonagall didn’t want to hear it. “Potter, follow me, now.” Jo uses this following image in Book 1 fairly often.
Harry followed in the professor’s footsteps back towards the castle, but his legs felt numb. The dive back to earth was faster than he could physically adjust too. He had to run now and then, to keep up with the Professor. He was positive that he was going to be expelled.
That was a logical conclusion given his experiences with Professor McGonagall so far. He wanted to say something in his defense, but for some reason, he couldn’t speak. Something was wrong with his voice. Although he was mentally functioning, he continued to have trouble readjusting himself physically. However, catching the Remembrall also points to Harry’s potential to catch the Golden Snitch. Those who catch that golden ball, no longer have a need to defend.
McGonagall didn’t say a single word the whole way. That silence infers she’s at a higher level of awareness than she appears to be. That made Harry even more certain he was headed back to the Dursleys. He wondered if Dumbledore would be kind enough to make him Hagrid’s assistant, but the thought twisted his stomach into a knot. This infers a connection between our emotions and thought. He imagined how it would feel to watch Ron and the others become Wizards and him only a Groundskeeper. Although he didn’t realize it yet, Harry was receiving enlightenment about Hagrid.
McGonagall stepped inside of a classroom and asked Professor Flitwick if she could borrow Wood for a moment. That confused Harry. He wondered if the wood she requested was a cane she was going to use on him, as the Dursleys were his only frame of reference. But Wood turned out to be a fifth year boy who was equally confused, but he followed McGonagall and Harry into an empty classroom. This suggests that Wood will eventually enter the Way of Return.
Peeves was writing rude words on the blackboard. “Out, Peeves!” Professor McGonagall barked. Before, when Harry had first come to Hogwarts, Professor McGonagall had ignored the ghosts that the first-year students were interacting with. This time, she clearly saw Peeves, and ordered him out of the room. Her interaction with the spiritual world alerts us that she has arisen to a higher state of consciousness and will be interacting with the boys from that higher level.
She slammed the door behind Peeves, and then turned to face the two boys. This is the moment that Harry had been dreading