Occlumency: Relax or resist? (Was: CHAPTER DISCUSSION: Chapter 29, Career Advice

[lupinlore]

No: HPFGUIDX 117284


--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "justcarol67" 
<justcarol67 at y...> wrote:
> 
> 
> Carol, hoping that the canon citations are sufficient to support and
> validate her point

No Carol, I'm afraid they are not.  The canon citations you make are 
sufficient to show that, under Snape's tutelage, Harry finally 
managed *something*.  That isn't, in and of itself, particularly 
impressive nor does it necessarily speak well of Snape's teaching 
methods.

To use the martial arts analogy, it's true that if you train with a 
master who attacks you full out every day, you will eventually block 
one or two blows.  That doesn't mean you've learned much and it 
doesn't mean that's a very good way of teaching.

It's true that a true enemy in martial arts or Occlumency will attack 
full out.  So what?  Training does not have to be realistic in every 
phase in order to be effective.  Else you would train in Army basic 
with live grenades.  Training is much better accomplished by going 
slow, having patience, and making sure your pupil is relaxed and 
comfortable in every stage.  Now, that doesn't mean they have to be 
relaxed and comfortable about the *attack*, which would lead to the 
results you describe.  Rather they have to be relaxed and comfortable 
about the *methods and techniques,* which is a different 
proposition.  An infantryman, for instance, in a firefight certainly 
doesn't want to be relaxed and comfortable about the enemy, it's 
true.  He most certainly wants to be relaxed and comfortable (in the 
sense of feeling competent and not having anxiety) about his rifle 
and grenades.  Sure he has to be vigilant about them, but one can 
only be truly vigilant about something one is comfortable with.

Many meditation Masters take the same approach.  It is true that 
clearing your mind requires effort.  But that effort can only be 
obtained in the process of relaxation.  One cannot focus if one is 
tense.  Therefore you have to relax, let go of distractions, find 
calm, and concentrate effort.  It is something of a paradox, but a 
well-known paradox.

There is also another way of interpreting the references you have 
given, which is that Snape partially succeeds in spite of himself. I 
have no doubt that the methods Snape uses are those he thinks are 
effective.  However, if ever there was a hypocrite it is him.  Clear 
your mind of emotion?  His mind is so choked and clogged by emotion 
that it has warped his entire life! 

Indeed, although Snape is a Master Occlumens, I wonder if he 
understands Occlumency very well.  I suspect he is a natural at 
Occlumency, but not for the reasons he believes.  Perhaps in the end 
Occlumency doesn't require clearing your mind, but martialing strong 
and violent emotion in its defense.  Snape is so constantly in the 
grip of emotion that he fools himself into thinking that he is 
clearing his mind and mastering himself when in fact all he is doing 
is deploying his perpetual rage and bitterness as a shield.  It would 
help explain the difference between Snape's instruction to *clear 
your mind* and Dumbledore's observation that Harry will be saved by 
his emotions.

Lupinlore