Letter 24: Arsenius Jigger to Hermione Granger, 1st April 1998

A/N: For simplicity's sake, titles of books, journals etc are underlined and emphases are italicised. In reviving the old tradition of epistolary novels, I understand the plot may be a little slow, laborious and difficult to follow. Some might consider it AU and a little OOC.

In order not to weary the reader's patience, a number of letters from the series of correspondences have been suppressed; those only have been given which appeared necessary to a complete understanding of the events in this group. For the same reason, some letters from the actors in the events of this drama have also been suppressed.

Proestigium or What the Seasons may Bring

Letter 24: Arsenius Jigger to Hermione Granger, 1st April 1998

Arsenius Jigger

c/o University of York,

School of Magical Arts

Faculty of Alchemy,

Potions Research Centre,

York,

United Kingdom

Miss Hermione Jane Granger,

Hogwarts Castle,

Head Girl's Room,

Gryffindor Tower,

Scotland,

United Kingdom.

1st April 1998

Miss Granger,

I did not mean to affront your sensibilities or slander your character. Do not ever say 'adieu' when academic discussions are left hanging and incomplete. It is bad form and in poor taste. If you were truly serious about making your mark in academia, you would not be so quick to anger. You must acquaint yourself with the harsh words that other academics will throw at you. They will attempt to discredit you, insult you and challenge you publicly in the journals, forcing you to defend your beliefs and knowledge. Are you going to cower away when they do so? You have better manners than that, young lady! The other academics and your detractors will be crueller than I have been. If you do not hardened yourself to it now, you will be a paper academic despised by everyone in your field. Could you abide by it? Would you stand for such treatment? Surely, by now, you would have known that education is an admirable thing, but nothing that is worth knowing can be taught. There are some things that you must necessarily learn on your own. I am training you, you impossible, insupportable creature, hapless and ignorant though you may be!

I attribute your supervisor's silence to your inadequate exploration on the properties of mallowsweet. In my own experiments, I discovered that the putrification of mallowsweet in ayeletropine (which you may or may not know, is a medieval potion meant to strip the then known compounds into their simplest forms) created 99 by-products. One of these is azurinetic. Azurinetic will aid the restructuring of mammal's DNA. I have successfully tried this on rats and ravens. Azurinetic binds very easily to the wolfsbane. I am sure your Professor Snape has notes on the same. You might like to read up on the subject and discuss it with him. If you wish to discuss the matter with me, you can take the matter up with me at Nomos, unless you deem it beneath you.

Voodoo love potions are a matter of weighty consideration, which I have again addressed in the attached paper from the latest edition of Ars Chemica. That would be a matter for your own deliberation. You may chuse to respond to it in the same journal as I have responded to your criticisms in this article. Therefore, Miss Granger, let us not say 'adieu' but 'au revoir', for I predict, we shall be hotly debating this topic for some time yet.

Yrs.,

A. Jigger.

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Journal Article

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Arsenius Jigger, "Voodoo Love Potions: New Thoughts on an Old Theory – Response to Hermione Granger's Critique," Ars Chemica, Vol. 1204, no. 4.

Fundamental to an understanding on voodoo love potions on the autonomic nervous system is the property of mutual antagonism in the reciprocal activation of subsystems known as sympathetic and parasympathetic, respectively. While Miss Granger of Hogwarts has acknowledged these matters in her study (brought to the author's attention through private correspondence), she does not fully comprehend the difficulties of taking the Hypatia voodoo potion en soi, because it is the quintessential voodoo love potion. Emotional responses attributed to the potion do not necessarily trigger the same neurological responses. Granted that there are occasions when the love potion will bond two genuinely loving hearts together, such cases are rare. Most users of voodoo potions, especially users of the Hypatia potion, only wish to pursue their private gratifications with the object of their desires. The uses in such cases differ little from some muggles' use so-called 'date rape drugs'. However, as Miss Granger pointed out, there are times when a couple are secretly enthralled by each other to the ignorance of the other. In such cases, the deployment of the voodoo love potion would bind them together for all eternity in mind, body, soul and in all. There would be no escape from its effects.

Yet, it is not the East Indies that originated the art of Voodoo love potions. Certainly, Voodoo was the name given by these peoples to this art form. But the potions themselves hail from ancient China. Earliest records on this can be traced in the teachings of Confucius, who wrote in the period of the Warring States. Like Miss Granger, Confucius was aware of the untoward applications of love potions. Being the victim of such a potion, he and his mistress were rent asunder because she did not really feel much affection for him. He also witnessed the unhappiness of his daughter who was bound to a man who despite his affection for her, ill-treated her. This unfortunate witch was bound to suffer with her wizard because they were bound in mind, body, soul and in all.

The Hypatia voodoo love potion, known to the ancient Chinese as the Affections of Li and Ren potion, could be used to the advantage of many. This usage is not well known as most abusers of these potions only wish to satiate lust. The Affections of Li and Ren potion when correctly brewed under tightly controlled circumstances and used correctly in the right situation would facilitate friendship, familial love and all manner of noble affection. The trappings of modernity have meant that Miss Granger, and many of you, will consider love as something that exists between oneself and one's sexual partner or beloved. The ancient Chinese, like the ancient Greeks believed in the separation of the many typologies of love. There is a kind of love for everything. I beseech my readers not to forget that. The Great Learning states that the Affections of Li and Ren potion is used to bring out the Confucian teaching of self cultivation through moral basis, viz. , to cultivate the self, one has to regulate the family; to regulate the family, you have to order the state; to order the state, you have to contribute to universal peace. These four things are to be accumulated. In other words, you cannot bring about universal peace if you do not do something about ordering the state, you cannot order the state; you cannot order the state if you do not regulate the family; you cannot regulate the family unless individuals within the family cultivate themselves. When the Affections of Li and Ren potion is used by those for the noble intent of preserving peace (as the Mongolians did with Pax Mongolia under the Great Khan), the practitioner and his subject will be granted much wisdom. In sort, they will further foment the development of self-cultivation that is within themselves. Self-cultivation consists of four things: (i) investigation of things (ii) extension of knowledge (iii) the sincerity of will (iv) rectification of will. So doing, will foster better philosophical understanding and good governance.

Now, the basis of good government – here we're slowly moving to the virtues of li and ren. So in 1.2 of The Analects, we're told that a good son would make a good subject. And what are the hallmarks of a good son? A good son must be exemplary in his conduct towards his parents. And what does it means to be exemplary in your conduct towards your parents? It means that when you are dealing with your parents, you always comply with the rites. That is what 8.2 and 1.9 are about. Being a good son is to always to act in accordance to li and to possess the virtue of filial piety. You see, when the gentleman meets the ruler (because the gentleman is an official), and feels profound affection for his parents, then he is being a good son, and the people will be stirred by his benevolence. So the root of good government which is the role that the gentleman plays by ensuring just rule, that gentleman must show profound affection for his parents. He must be an example of the good son in other words. That example according to this passage, 8.2, will help to stir the people to benevolence. And 1.9, this is interesting because the Confucians put a lot of emphasis on not just rites but funeral rights, they have very demanding funeral rights, "conduct the funeral of your parents with meticulous care and let not sacrifices to your remote ancestors be forgotten, and the virtue of the common people will incline towards fullness." So there's a sense in which, good government ensures that the people will be reformed by the exemplary conducts of the officials. This can be further impounded when the Affections of Li and Ren potion is given to the people. The Tang dynasty later successfully did so and brought much peace to its people. However, there are some ethical considerations in such methods, which clearly go against the teachings and Confucius's specific instructions as to the uses of the Affections of Li and Ren potions

The Confucian Affections of Li and Ren potion exists because of certain ways of perceiving the institution of the family. It will regulate rites. Not just ordinary rites, but rites that will never change. Rites are these supposedly objective descriptions of behaviour, and it regulates not just the behaviour of human beings, but because these rites also take place in the temple, it also regulates the way you deal with your dead ancestors – the spiritual realm. What is so remarkable about rites as sanctioned and elicited by the Affections of Li and Ren potion, is that these rites are objective prescriptions of our behaviour and as such they are different from law.

It would be clearer in the writings of Mo Tzu, especially in his chapter entitled 'Impartial Love'. He elucidates the usage of the Affections of Li and Ren potion in political situations and governance.

Perhaps, after considering this, Miss Granger and others of her mindset will come to be a better understanding and appreciation for the theory behind such love potions.

Footnotes

Proestigium is Latin for illusion. Ironically, the English word Prestige derives from it.

For the confused, note that in the previous letter, HG says she wrote a response to AJ's article on love potions but is too pissed to (1) share her ideas with him, (2) attach the journal article for him. In this letter, AJ says he has read her response and this article (attached with the letter) here is a reply to her response.

It's my story and I do what I want with it. In this story, Voodoo love potions (and only voodoo love potions) is based on a multi-purpose Chinese love potion, which in turn is based on the Confucian ideas of Li and Ren. The Confucian ideas are based on a lecture series that I am presently giving on Ancient Chinese political thought. The Affectations of Ren and Li potion is made up.

The numbers in parenthesis in the journal article are section references to Confucius's Analects. It is an academic article; as such, it has to look like one. The words in parenthesis in the journal article are transliteration of Mandarin words.

The Voodoo babble is made-up rubbish; the rest is drawn from a lecture series that I am presently giving in Ancient Chinese Political Thought.

Thank you for bearing with me and this plot. I know that it may be a little difficult to follow and a little absurd at this point. Your kind words of encouragement and forbearance are appreciated.