What happens after death (Was Re: Death, where is thy...?)

[Zara]

No: HPFGUIDX 167233

> Goddlefrood:
> It is one of the continuing mysteries of the series. In respect 
> of ghosts we are apparently to learn more of them in book 7. The 
> portraits, so JKR tells us, repeat catchphrases only, more or 
> less, from when they were alive. My opinion, fwiw, is that the 
> portrait that we have seen the most of in the series to date 
> (Phineas Nigellus) does rather more than simply repeat 
> catchphrases.

zgirnius:
I tend to agree abd Phineas. He even appears to take completely 
independent actions on his own initiative for his own personal 
reasons. For example when he is told that Sirius has died, and he 
goes back to 12 GP to investigate.

My thoughts on this are that perhaps the portraits do not retain all 
that much details of their past lives, more just general traits, but 
are able to act in the present somewhat as they might have. So PNB 
remains snarky (as he presumably was in his past life as Hogwarts' 
least favorite Headmaster) and concerned with the fate of his 
descendants, and he can shuttle back and forth between Hogwarts and 
12 GP interacting with all he meets in those places, but could not 
recount secrets of his past actual life. And likewise Dumbledore's 
portrait will retain a quirky sense of humor, wise demeanor, concern 
with the fate of Hogwarts and its human residents, and opposition to 
prejudice against Muggle-borns and non-human magical creatures, but, 
likewise, will not be able to shed all that much light on the living 
Dumbledore's secrets and actions.