What Happened To Voldemort After He Died In Harry Potter
Summary
- Voldemort’s fractured soul prevented him from passing into the afterlife.
- A person’s soul can be repaired through true remorse for their actions.
- Voldemort’s plan to avoid death failed due to his hubris and an extra fragmented soul.
Voldemort died at the end of Harry Potter, but what happened to his soul after he fell during his duel with the Boy Who Lived? Death is somewhat different in the wizarding world, where ghosts are common, and items like the Resurrection Stone make things even more complicated. In all, it’s evident in Harry’s story that death isn’t quite the end. There is proof of an afterlife in Harry Potter and an indication that the people who die can continue to look after their living loved ones. Of course, Voldemort was a unique case and suffered a different fate than the standard witch or wizard.
The Boy Who Lived Himself died in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and when he “woke up,” he found himself standing in what has come to be called the King’s Cross Purgatory. This was a limbo between life and death, and Dumbledore told Harry that, if he chose, he could get on a train and be taken “on” to the afterlife. What the final destination after death is like in the world of Harry Potter is a mystery since Harry chose to return to the world of the living. However, this Deathly Hallows chapter confirmed that the afterlife exists and also confirmed Voldemort’s own fate.
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Voldemort’s Severed Soul Couldn’t Pass On To The Afterlife
Only An Intact Soul Can Carry On After Death In Harry Potter
In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Dumbledore explained that the act of murder did terrible damage to a person’s soul. To kill another human is such an abomination of nature that it physically rips the soul. A person who makes a Horcrux takes advantage of this damage, performing an additional spell that takes a fragment and stores it within a physical vessel. However, regardless of whether a witch or wizard does this, Dumbledore explains that a fractured soul is doomed since only one that is intact can pass on into the afterlife.
Of course, Voldemort did not have an intact soul when he died at the end of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. He had fractured his soul several times and purposely created six Horcruxes. This meant that the Dark Lord suffered a fate worse than death when his body was killed during his final battle with Harry. His damaged soul, which was represented by the flayed and bloody infant-like creature in the King’s Cross Purgatory, would be stuck in limbo for all eternity. There would be no peace for Voldemort’s soul, only eternal pain and suffering.
There Was Only One Way Voldemort Could Have Saved His Soul In Harry Potter
The Harry Potter Books Reveal A Way That A Severed Soul Can Be Repaired
Once a person fragments their soul through murder, they are seemingly doomed to an eternity in purgatory. However, there is a singular hope for their eternal soul, as spelled out by Hermione at the beginning of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. She read in a book that, once a person fragmented their soul and created a Horcrux, the only way to repair the damage would be to experience true remorse for what they had done. Experiencing such remorse would be devastatingly painful, but if done wholly selflessly, that person would have a renewed soul and be able to pass on to the afterlife.
Harry knew that the Dark Lord was about to die, so he told his enemy to “be a man” and attempt to experience remorse for all he had done, saying, “I’ve seen what you’ll be otherwise.”
In the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows books, Harry urged Voldemort to feel remorse for his crimes. When they faced off for their final battle, Harry knew that the Dark Lord was about to die, so he told his enemy to “be a man” and attempt to experience remorse for all he had done, saying, “I’ve seen what you’ll be otherwise.” He was referring to the pitiful, flayed creature he had seen in the King’s Cross Purgatory and wanted to give Voldemort a chance to avoid this. However, this was beyond what Voldemort was capable of, so he suffered a fate worse than death.
Why Voldemort Risked Damning His Soul For Eternity (& Why His Plan Failed)
Voldemort Believed That An Obscure Form Of Magic Would Keep Him Alive
Dumbledore was always astutely aware of the punishment for murder. It was why he was so determined to ensure that his own death didn’t happen at the hands of Draco Malfoy, telling Snape that he would not have the boy’s soul ripped apart on his account. Dumbledore also freqently warned Voldemort about what he was risking, reminding the villain in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix that there were fates that would be far worse than dying, However, this was something that the Dark Lord simly couldn’t understand.
Voldemort knew the risk of dying with a severed soul, but he was so full of hubris that he didn’t think it mattered since he had found a foolproof way to avoid death. One Horcrux would still have been a risk, but the number seven, the most magically significant number, would save him. Voldemort split his soul into seven pieces, one stored in his body and the others stashed away in Horcruxes. He believed this made him truly immortal—entirely protected by the magic of seven.
Though the movies were unclear, Dumbledore clarified in the
Harry Potter
books that Voldemort only intended to make six Horcruxes, with seven soul fragments in total to provide magical protection.
Of course, the Dark Lord didn’t realize that he had made a mistake. He unknowingly ripped his soul an extra time, with the eighth piece taking refuge within Harry. Without the number seven, Voldemort’s soul was vulnerable, and Harry was able to hunt the Horcruxes down one by one before facing the villain himself. So, though he believed himself immortal, Voldemort died at the end of Harry Potter, and while the souls of his victims carried on in peace, he suffered for all eternity.
Harry Potter
Harry Potter is a multimedia franchise about an orphaned boy who enrolls at Hogwarts School of Wizardry, where he learns the truth about himself, his family, and the terrible evil that haunts the magical world. Adapted from the novels, Harry Potter is an eight-episode film saga that follows the journey of Harry Potter and his friends, Hermoine Granger and Ron Weasley, as they navigate the tricky world of growing up, school life, and magic. Starting from year one and moving to their seventh year, the films chronicle the students’ time at Hogwarts while unfurling a sinister plot that centers around the unsuspecting Harry. With the return of the dark wizard, Voldemort, the students and professors at Hogwarts will fight to carry on as the world around them may change forever. Harry Potter has expanded beyond the world of its films and novels with several video games, a spin-off film series titled Fantastic Beasts, and even attractions at Universal Studios.
- Cast
- Daniel Radcliffe , Emma Watson , Rupert Grint , Tom Felton , Alan Rickman , Matthew Lewis , Bonnie Wright , Evanna Lynch , Maggie Smith , Michael Gambon , Richard Harris , Ralph Fiennes , Helena Bonham Carter , Alfred Enoch , Harry Melling , Gary Oldman , Robert Pattinson , Warwick Davis , Oliver Phelps , James Phelps , David Bradley , David Thewlis , Katie Leung , Jason Isaacs , Imelda Staunton , David Tennant , Jamie Campbell Bower , Timothy Spall , Robbie Coltrane , Eddie Redmayne , Jude Law , Katherine Waterston , Ezra Miller , Dan Fogler , Alison Sudol , Johnny Depp , Mads Mikkelsen
- Character(s)
- Harry Potter , Hermione Granger , Ron Weasley , Dumbledore , Minerva McGonagall , Rubeus Hagrid , Dobby the House Elf , Draco Malfoy , Sirius Black , Ginny Weasley , Voldemort
