In June 1997 the world was introduced to Harry Potter. The British author J.K. Rowling published her first book: Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, the first of a series of 7 books that are set in the Harry Potter Dimension. This dimension is very similar to ours. The big difference is that some people there are wizards and are capable of performing magic.
This results in a division of society
The two parts of humanity live very separate lives: The wizards try to keep their existence as secret as possible. They have their own government, newspapers, postal system, fashion, sports and means of transportation.
Both groups are intertwined nonetheless because sometimes magically gifted children are born to non-magical parents (Muggles), like Harry´s friend Hermione Granger, and some magical parents produce non-magical children. So Muggles and wizards have the same origins. One side can hardly understand the other though and this is why many prejudices exist on both sides.
Both cultures have differences in status
There are poor people like Harry and his friend Ron Weasley and there are rich ones like the Malfoy family, who deem themselves to be better. On both sides there are good and bad, tolerant and intolerant people. The Muggle aunt and uncle who grudgingly raise Harry are a very bad stepfamily who try to keep him from his magic heritage and harm him as much as they can.
There is a lot of information about the Harry Potter Dimension
This is the world´s bestselling fantasy series. 500 million copies have been sold worldwide, translated into 80 languages. People could not wait to read the next sequel, just like me. I was so glad that I did not have to wait for the translation into German and thus could read the books months earlier.
Harry and his friends fight against the evil Lord Voldemort, a dark wizard who wants to become immortal and be the dictator over both wizards and Muggles. The series concludes with Harry finally winning thus saving the world.
This series made the Harry Potter dimension almost as popular as the Fairy Tale Dimension. The word Muggle has even made its way into the Oxford English Dictionary!
Most people are not aware that these constructs of human fantasy are actually reality – just somewhere else – and that the authors have successfully tapped into them for us to enjoy.
Similarities to our dimension
Harry Potter´s world shares our geography. Great Britain and other countries exist and the continents seem to be much the same.
We tend to separate ourselves from people who are different
There is a deeply ingrained fear of people who are different from us whether they look different, have a different religion or sexual orientation. This is because of our fight or flight inheritance where everything that is different could potentially be deadly.
Society in the Harry Potter Dimension reminds me of a very strict Apartheid system. In the US the president stands for people who like to separate themselves from Blacks, Hispanics and Asians.
In Germany you can see this, too. Many refugees with different skin colour came into the country lately overwhelming part of the population. People react with resistance because it is clear that Germany will never be the same. This is why I work with refugees.
We are fascinated by magic
Magic does not work in our dimension, but we are fascinated by it. For some people it sounds like magic that we can create our own reality: We are getting more conscious of our energies and the way we use our thoughts and actions to materialise what we want to have in our lives.
Similarities to the Fairy Tale Dimension
I just read The Tales of Beedle the Bard – by J.K. Rowling. In this book she compares our (Muggle) fairy tales to Wizard fairy tales. It seems that both dimensions have a strong connection to the Fairy Tale Dimension. Their fairy tales are also also played there.
In our fairy tales the heroes often have to overcome magic of an adversary – like the poisoned apple in Snow White for example.
In the fairy tales of the Harry Potter Dimension the heroes are capable of doing magic themselves and encounter severe problems because Magic seems to cause as many problems as it cures. It can make life complicated. Here an example:
The tale of The Wizard and the Hopping Pod:
A wizard inherits a cauldron from his father but he has no intention to follow in his footsteps and generously cure the Muggles in his village who come to him for help. He soon discovers why his father was so helpful: When he turns away the first help-seekers the cauldron starts to hop after him clanging loudly displaying the symptoms of all the people in need around him making sleep impossible. Finally the son has to give in and he helps everybody so that the cauldron is quiet and he can finally get some rest.
Magic by wand in the Harry Potter Dimension
In the Harry Potter Dimension wizards are all but helpless without their wands. Wands are made out of different kinds of wood and are said to have different properties. It is a very important to find one fitting well to each wizard´s style. Ron Weasley has to bear the consequences of having to use a broken hand-me-down wand that produces faulty results all the time.
A wand says something about the wizard who owns it and some are even thought to be socially incompatible: “When his wand is oak and hers is holly, then to marry would be folly”. (The Tales of Beedle the Bard, page 118)
The wands are usually buried with their user when they die because people believe that they are capable of learning and would possibly become powerful and therefore dangerous when learning magic from generations of wizards. Imagine that!
Wands have to be used with spells. Without the right spell a wand cannot do much. All this complicates doing magic and to not cause any harm to yourself and to others you need to have a thorough education in magic in an institution like Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Magic in the Fairy Tale Dimension
In the Fairy Tale Dimension everybody has basic magic abilities. It is normal just like breathing. People don´t have to think about coming back to life when their play has been too fierce again. They don´t need wands for their magic. Not everybody is interested in becoming a wizard of course. For those who are gifted there are hidden schools that are well secured like the school of my friend the tree teacher. Students learn spells and the fabrication of magic objects there.
Death is final
Contrary to the Fairy Tale Dimension death in the Harry Potter Dimension is final, just like in our dimension. Some wizards have tried to overcome this with Dark Magic only to produce terrible monsters, the Inferi.
The postal system
in the Fairy Tale Dimension is very diverse as I wrote in this article. Post by owl is also known and many other means.
Hedwig, Harry´s white owl, delivers his mail. She is able to transport even parcels as big as the famous broom Nimbus 2000 Harry received when he joined the Quidditch team.
Did you know people play a form of Quidditch in our dimension, too? Take a look here.
Means of transportation
Wizards in the Harry Potter Dimension cannot fly like birds. Brooms are one possible means of transportation. We have witnessed Harry flying in a car to Hogwarts in the second book.
Another means of transportation is Apparition which teleports you immediately from one place to another. Only very accomplished wizards manage this. And there is the Floo Network that lets you travel from fireplace to fireplace that is one of the main modes of transportation.
In the Fairy Tale Dimension there are secret passageways for the ring bearer and her shadows throughout the dimension. I also own a pair of flying shoes like the Greek messenger god Hermes. You can find more information on transportation methods in the FTD here.
Invisibility cloaks
They exist in both dimensions although they are rare. Harry inherited one from his father enabling him to move about unseen. I have one in the Fairy Tale Dimension. It is one of the perks of being the ring bearer. Sneaking around is one of the favourite pastimes of many Fairy Tale Dimension inhabitants.
Books
The book of monsters Harry consults in the library at Hogwarts is similar to the talking books in the libraries I adore so much in the Fairy Tale Dimension.
The Fairy Tale Dimension has become part of my life
I like to visit the Harry Potter Dimension. It is fun. But my favourite dimension besides the one we live in is the Fairy Tale Dimension.
I encounter beings from the Fairy Tale Dimension more often now that I am more aware of them:
The other day I was in a restaurant alone and when I left three waiters fell practically over each other telling me good-bye and giving me big toothy smiles. I greeted them back and immediately thought: They behave as if I was a celebrity, they must be from the Fairy Tale Dimension!
What other dimensions do you want to visit?
We all visit other dimensions without being aware of it; mostly in dreams. This week we start a dream group headed by my friend Harry Bosma where we visit other dimensions in dreams. It is always very surprising and fun what comes up in these group dream events. Check out his website. Here is an article about the Waterfall Dimension and Dreaming about a previous dream group.
Links
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Potter
- Since 2012 Harry Potter also has a digital home: https://www.pottermore.com/.
Books
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher´s Stone
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows
- The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J. K. Rowlings
Pictures: Pixabay and private
© Inge Schumacher
The Fairy Tale Dimension 