Who or what is Nagini? (Was: Harry Horcrux redux)

[littleleahstill]

No: HPFGUIDX 155162

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "houyhnhnm102" <celizwh at ...> 
wrote:
>
> Ken:
> 
> > I looked over the thread from last January and I see a 
> > lot of discussion of what actual snake Nagini could be. 
> > Is there any known snake that fits?
> 
> houyhnhnm:
> 
> Well, as I pointed out in message 155099, the triangular head 
suggests 
> a viper.  But as Neri pointed out in message 155106 (and as I 
should 
> have remembered from clinical hematology), viper venom exhibits 
> coagulant, not anti-coagulant properties.  But real snakes do not 
have 
> language.  So I think Nagini is a magical snake and she has 
whatever 
> characteristics Rowling chooses to give her. Attempting to 
determine 
> what kind of RL snake she is in order to deduce clues is probably 
not 
> a fruitful line of inquiry.

Leah:

I remember a discussion on this subject on one of the mugglenet 
forums, and the nearest match for Nagini  in the real world seemed 
to be the bushmaster.  Information on bushmasters can be found 
at:http://www.zoo.org/educate/fact_sheets/bushmaster/b_master.htm
It is a South American viper, also known as the copperhead and pit 
viper (someone must have obtained an acromantula egg from South 
America (FB says they live in Brazil)and given it to Hagrid; perhaps 
LV has a source there).  The bushmaster has the viper head and arrow 
markings, and reaches about 12 feet in length, Nagini's markings and 
length as seen by Frank Bryce. Its venom is not particularly strong, 
but is extremely copious (good for milking?)and has the interesting 
property of causing internal bleeding;while this is not quite what 
happened to Arthur, it does suggest some anti-coagulent properties. 
The bushmaster has extremely sensitive heat dectectors and uses 
infra-red to hunt prey- pehaps the vibrant colours seen by Harry in 
the MOM.  The species name for the bushmaster is lachesis muta or 
silent fate; Lachesis was one of the three Fates, the one who 
measured out the spun thread. 

I dont' think we are meant to assume that Nagini has human 
language.  In GOF, LV speaks to her in parseltongue.  In PS/SS
Harry speaks with the apparently unmagical boa constrictor in the 
same way.

Having said all that, I tend to agree with Neri. JKR adapts 
mythological creatures and there is no reason why she should not 
adapt real ones.  She may well mix magic and real characteristics.  
Nagini's name seems to have links with Hindu mythology, nagas being 
a group of semi-divine beings with both human and snake properties; 
their totem was the cobra.  Vasuki was a naga used by the gods to 
churn immortality from the ocean of milk. Nagini was also one of the 
cobras in Rudyard Kipling's story of Rikki-tikki-tavi, where she is 
killed by the mongoose.  Although not related to weasels, mongooses 
are weasel -like in behaviur and appearance- does this mean 
anything?     


Pippin wrote:
>One of the nagging frustrations of an otherwise contented life
>is that I can't remember where I read, sometime before GoF came
>out and I joined the fandom, an interview with JKR in which she
>was asked if there was anything she would change if she were
>to do it all over. She said that she hadn't known when she wrote
>PS/SS that Boa Constrictors weren't poisonous. Perhaps
>Harry's released boa and Nagini were once the same character,
>and Nagini's part was rewritten when JKR realized they
>couldn't be.

Leah:

Relief- I thought I was imagining this, having also searched quotes 
and interviews unsuccessfully for this snippet.  If Nagini was 
originally intended to be the boa and therefore indebted to Harry, 
was she then replaced in the plot line by Wormtail(who is 
frequenntly connected with her)?.  I liked Neri's idea of obtaining 
Harry's blood via Nagini, but can't quite see a final connection 
between indebtedness, Nagini and Wormtail.  

Leah