But in essence divided

Okay, so this has been bugging me since book 5, but what earth did dumbledore mean when he said (page 416 Ukedition) "But in essence divided?"

im pretty sure it had something to do with Horcruxes, but its something i've always wanted to know the emaning of, so any one got any suggestions?

Which chapter is it? I mean, I don't have the UK edition, but I might find it in the swedish one.

its St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and injuries. thats the chapter name.

um i dont knwo what on earth that means and now yu have got it stuck in my head and wnting to know erg lol.mabey he was on about friends like it ouldent work if the essence was divided so like he needs loads of people to combine there powers together so they can defeate voldemort and it wont work if the essence is divided.

um, no i dont think so polly, im 95% sure it is when Dumbledore first realsied about Voldies Horcruxes, but i need to know exactly what it means.

Thanks anyway.

Also in 'essense divided' it is more about taking apart rather than putting together, otherwise it would be in essense joined or something like that.

I am wondering whether you are right about the horcrux theory. I havent got the book in front of me so ill have to look it up, but JK often puts little bits within earlier books that give signs of what is to come.

I'll get back to you - it might halp when i refresh my memory of that chapter

Thank you!!!!

i have done everyone's heads in with asking that question, John says he'll hyit me with the book if i do it again, so um, yeah, im desperate to work it out.

I think that it does mean the horcruxes. But it could also mean Harry and Voldemort. In essence they are divided, but they also share many connections.

could this be a possible clue to Harry being a Horcrux? i fail to see how this is possible, surely you would have to commit the kill, breaking the soul again before you can perform the spell to create the horcrux which would mean Voldie couldnt create the horcrux because he was almost dead ... does that make any sense?

The actual quote:

Quote :

"Dumbledore now swooped down upon one of the fragile silver instruments whose function Harry had never known, carried it over to his desk, sat down facing them again, and tapped it gently with the tip of his wand.
The instrument tinkled into life at once with rhythmic clinking noises. Tiny puffs of pale green smoke issued from the miniscule silver tube at the top. Dumbledore watched the smoke closely, his brow furrowed, and after a few seconds, the tiny puffs became a steady stream of smoke that thickened and coiled in the air.... A serpent's head grew out of the end of it, opening its mouth wide. (...)
"Naturally, naturally," murmured Dumbledore apparently to himself, still observing the stream of smoke without the slightest sign of surprise. "But in essence divided?"
Harry could make neither head nor tail of this question. The smoke serpent, however, split itself instantly into two snakes, both coiling and undulating in the dark air. With a look of grim satisfaction Dumbledore gave the instrument another gentle tap with his wand."

The smoke serpent split into two...this is what I think it means.

Nagini is the giant snake, a pet so to speak of Voldemort. Voldemort himself has become snake like.

Voldemort controlls nagini.

Is it possible that somehow Nagini is an extension of Voldemort, or that when Voldemort was making a new body, he became dependent or conected to Nagini?

I think the smoke serpent is symbolic of Voldemort, and the division into two intertwined serpents means that Nagini is an extension of Voldemort.

The reason why Harry is in the eyes of the snake is because he also is connected with Voldemort, who is using Nagini as an extension of his body.

"In essence divided?" or In it's very nature divided?

I think Dumbledore is questioning wheter or not Nagini and Voldemort are truely seperate entities, or of they are now permenantly a part of each other.

on a completley different note...

it could illude to the connection between Harry and Voldemort.

DD later says that the reason that he avoided Harrry was because he could sense Voldemort lurking in Harry's mind, waiting to catch DDs eye and learn something about the prophecy or the order.

Perhaps the two snakes represent the connection between harry and voldemort, and that DD is unsure if the two are truely divided.

I like that idea. What about it talking of when voldemort took harrys blood to make him whole again. remember dumbledore look when harrywas telling him and sirius. Could it mean that?

I think it means Nagini is a horcrux... or Voldemort is Nagini's Hrocrux.. no tht doesnt make since.. I dont know.. its very deep and you can't really understand it until JK Rowling tells us

i got confused...... that happens often....lol..... hopefully jk explains cause i would like to know....

well Nagini was a horcruz and I'm pretty sure that in the PotterCast interview JKR explained this. I'll look for a transcript.

Ah ha, it all makes perfect sense now, even with the books finished it was still nice to have some confirmation from JK on what it meant.

I'm so glad you posted that, stephy! That has always made my brain hurt as I tried to figure it out. Hahah