Harry Potter's Invitation to the World
by Vickie Ewell
Chapter 59 – Hermione Suffers Text Anxiety (HP Chapter 14)
As the weeks went by, the kids figured that Snape’s bad mood meant the Stone was safe, although they did press their ear to the third-floor door whenever they passed by. They wanted to make sure Fluffy was still growling.
Harry tried to give Quirrell an encouraging smile, now and then, and Ron started telling people off whenever they laughed at Quirrell’s stutter. The boys obviously felt sorry for him, and Ron was following Harry’s lead, but this also pointed out how easily fallen man can be deceived. The boys didn’t trust Snape. Yet, he was their best ally.
Hermione, on the other hand, couldn’t care less about Quirrell’s feelings or personal situation. With exams only 10 weeks away, she placed her total focus on her studies, and kept insisting the boys do the same. Ron couldn’t understand Hermione’s attitude. She knew the material, so why was she studying? Why was she stressing about it?
Test anxiety occurs when we place too much importance on the outcome. Hermione’s justification for her stress was that they had to pass their final exams to move into their second year. They couldn’t fail and move forward. That gave us a peek into one of Hermione’s greatest fears: failing her classes. But Jo also gives us a tidbit of our own. We don’t move forward from the physical level to the Etheric until we learn everything that’s required at the physical level and pass our own set of tests.
The requirements to enter the Path keep most people locked into their cycles of reincarnation and karmic debt. It also hints at the idea that to move from year one to year two, the kids will receive spiritual tests as well as physical ones. Most spiritual traditions believe in tests, but see them as a method God uses to judge them as being worthy of entering into His kingdom, or not. In reality, testing is a simple way to determine if someone is ready to move into a higher state of being. It’s not about worthiness.
Easter wasn’t nearly as fun as Christmas because the teachers gave the students plenty of extra homework to do over the holiday. Plus, it was hard for Harry to relax during that time with Hermione constantly reciting her studies out loud. There was so much extra work involved, that Harry and Ron spent most of their free time in the library with Hermione to get through it all.
As we move forward, the work becomes heavier toward the end. Perhaps, that explains why some people’s lives appear to be without much opposition, while others find themselves buried in catastrophes and health problems, tempting them to run around seeking for solutions. Ron found the workload overwhelming. It was a nice day, and he’d rather be outside.
Jo told us the sky was colored forget-me-not blue, and that Summer was coming. Blue is the color of water and symbolizes the Spirit. The kids were getting ready to advance, yet Ron feared he would never be able to remember everything they were studying. Early Summer is a time of growth. Late Summer is a time of harvest.
Summer ushers in a transitional period, but both Ron and Hermione felt rushed and were stressing about the tests. What started out as Hermione’s anxiety about failing has now overflowed onto Ron. They were placing too much importance on their physical lessons, rather than what they had learned throughout the entire school year.
A few minutes later, Ron noticed that Hagrid was also in the library, and asked him why he was there. Hagrid seemed to be hiding something behind his back. He looked suspicious. Hagrid was upset to see the kids in the library. Were they still looking for Nicolas Flamel? Ron took pride in telling him they had discovered whom Nicolas was ages ago. He also informed Hagrid they knew what Fluffy was guarding. When he began to reveal it was the Philosopher’s Stone, Hagrid cut him off.
I’m not sure why Ron felt such a strong need to tell Hagrid all of that. He wasn’t sharing anything that Hagrid didn’t already know. He seems to be reaching for a feeling of importance. Harry’s question about what else was protecting the Stone made far more sense to discuss, but Hagrid was just as upset with Harry as he was with Ron.
He suggested the trio come to his hut to discuss the matter. Kids weren’t supposed to know about the Stone. This was the second time we’ve been told that. Hagrid’s fear was that if word got out, others would think he was the one who had told them. Although Hagrid was a Master of Compassion, he was still entangled with many self-doubts, insecurities, and fears. This points to the idea that fallen man doesn’t know what perfection is, nor what’s really going on.
This was similar to how Alchemy worked in ancient times. Alchemical schools had students do outward chemistry activities, similar to Hogwarts’ potion classes. Only those students who figured out the lessons had a deeper meaning and began asking questions were Initiated into the schools’ Secret Orders. Nothing about the inner man was ever taught openly in classes.
Ron, Hermione, and Harry were traveling a similar path. While the story presents the Stone as a physical entity, the kids were showing they had the drive, determination, and curiosity to be Initiated into its Mysteries.
As Hagrid shuffled off, Hermione become concerned with what he was hiding behind his back. Ron decided to check out the section of the library that Hagrid was in before he saw him. After doing that, Ron realized that Hagrid was looking for information on dragons. Hagrid had always wanted a dragon, so it didn’t appear strange to Harry, but the Warlock’s Convention in 1709 had outlawed the breeding of dragons.
One of the Wizarding World’s main goals was to keep themselves concealed from Muggles. Having a dragon in the backyard would be a dead giveaway. Plus, dragons were dangerous, Ron said. That was his basic survival instinct talking, but it was also based on experiences his brother Charlie has had. While there were wild dragons, one of the tasks of the Ministry of Magic was to cover up their presence. When Muggles spot a dragon, the Ministry sent someone to cast a spell that would make them forget they had seen one.
The Ministry served the needs and interests of the Wizarding World, but they also seem to work against Muggles moving forward. Ron didn’t say the Ministry fixes Muggles who kick up a fuss, but any Muggle who merely spots a dragon. The rules of the Game seem to be: You’re either born with special magical gifts, or you’re not. If you’re not, then you aren’t worthy to associate with those who are.
Granted, most Muggles don’t believe in magical abilities, but most of that disbelief was because Wizards and Witches had chosen to keep themselves hidden. At the heart of the fear of discovery sat an actual fear of Muggles themselves, which was why many were prone to criticize Muggles, as well as feel superior to them.
There was no way of knowing how many Muggles would move forward or improve the conditions for both worlds if they discovered that their world was not the only world, or choice, that existed.
The Wizarding World lived in just as much fear and physical conditioning as the Muggles did. If you had a certain degree of magical ability, you were brought into the knowledge of the Wizarding World, but that still didn’t mean you would move forward. Opportunities to progress might or might not come your way, but very few took advantage of them, when offered. Many also struggled with impure motives.
The Ministry was politically motivated, but they also reminded me of the way most organized religions and secret societies eventually grow into self-serving entities. What begins as enlightening – a social order among like-minded individuals, a safe place where people could help each other evolve – always mutates into a business.
The goal of the business was to survive, so competition was squashed and anything that threatened the survival of the organization as presently constituted was dealt with in a manner that protected the business’ interests. Secrecy was protected at all costs, so memories were wiped clean, but in doing so, many individuals were prevented from entering into a higher level of consciousness