- Hey, just quick trigger warning.
This video does include a verbal reference to suicide.
Hey, brother.
The unforgivable curses, the three most powerful
and darkest spells known to wizardkind.
The use of a single one, even once,
can land you a lifetime in Azkaban.
They are, of course, The Imperius Curse,
the Cruciatus Curse, and last, but certainly not least-
- Avada Kedavra!
(spell crackling and booming)
- Throughout the story, Harry finds himself
on the receiving end of each of these curses at least once,
and even tries to use two of them.
Which keep that in mind,
because it is going to be incredibly important
as we peel back the various layers of this idea.
But overall, it's not hard to understand
why they could be so dangerous.
One kills, one tortures, and one controls.
But as long as we've been reading Harry Potter,
they've just existed in the canon.
We've never really thought to ask
who created these spells and why.
But let me tell you, as we dove deeper and deeper,
I couldn't believe how the actual creators
of the spell managed to weave themselves
into the story so perfectly.
Like, it continues to pay off over and over.
(upbeat theme music) Today, we find out.
- [Ben And J] Hey, brother!
(logo whooshing)
- Who created the unforgivable curses?
Well, today, I think we're just gonna start
with the answer, and then work backwards,
because the more you peel it back, the crazier it gets.
My confidence level on this one is sky high.
So without any further ado,
the creators of the unforgivable curses
were none other than the three Peverell brothers,
the same brothers who created the Deathly Hallows.
The idea being that not only did each brother create one
of the Deathly Hallows,
but they also each created one of the unforgivable curses.
But before we get too deep into this,
I do wanna give a huge shout out to @brettsthoughts
over on TikTok for first piecing together this idea.
Because like I said, once I started digging into it,
I found it to be more and more and more true.
So I reached out to him and asked if we could expound
upon it here on the channel, and he was all for it.
So if you wanna see the original post
or any of the other TikToks he makes, I will leave a link
to that down in the description down below.
He does lots of other fun, Harry Potter content.
So please go check it out.
Give him a follow and a like, tell him we sent you there.
Thank you, @brettsthoughts.
So again, the idea is that the three brothers
who created the Deathly Hallows,
the Elder Wand, the Resurrection Stone,
and the Cloak of Invisibility,
each created one of the unforgivable curses.
Dumbledore himself says it's more likely
that the brothers were just incredibly talented,
powerful wizards who were able
to create the Deathly Hallows,
rather than it being more likely that they ran into Death
on a bridge who gave them the items.
But if they were clever enough
to make those super powerful items,
then it stands the reason that they were also clever enough
to come up with these insanely powerful spells.
In fact, the fact that Avada Kedavra is the killing curse,
and that they're also supposed
to have created the Deathly Hallows
kind of fits pretty well on its own.
Right, like the creators
of the Deathly Hallows created the Killing Curse.
I mean, heck, you could probably go one step further
and say that the creation of the spell Avada Kedavra
is what led the Elder Wand to have such a reputation
as a wand that could never lose.
Like, is it truly an unbeatable wand
or was he just the only one
who knew the unblockable killing curse?
But, so yes, if you're doing the math,
that does mean, I think, the first brother, Antioch,
who had the Elder Wand is the one who created Avada Kedavra.
And since he was the first brother,
he also seems like a good place to start.
As the story goes,
Antioch ask Death to create a wand more powerful
than any in existence.
"A wand that must always win duels for its owner.
"A wand worthy of a wizard who had conquered death."
Conquered death, indeed.
More like conquered the spell that can cast death.
But really, the way Antioch describes
how he wants the wand to work,
lines up pretty well with how we know Avada Kedavra to work.
Moody tells the class in Goblet of Fire,
"Not nice, not pleasant, and there's no counter-curse,
"there's no blocking it.
"Only one known person has ever survived it.
"And he's sitting right in front of me."
An unbeatable spell for an unbeatable wand.
Even the fact that Harry himself is the only person
to survive Avada Kedavra.
And then by book seven, he like, levels up
and survives it again, this time cast by the Elder Wand,
seems to fit.
Of course, in that moment, Harry himself actually
is already the master of the Elder Wand,
and master of death in a way that Antioch never really was.
Because while Antioch may have conjured up the spell
that can cast death, he certainly couldn't avoid death.
And actually even more interesting
is that the Elder Wand has a Thestral core hair,
which according to Wizarding World,
is a potent, but a tricky core to master.
Only a witch or wizard who was capable
of accepting death could do so.
So yet another reason to question whether or not mastery
of the Elder Wand comes from winning it
or just the mindset of the user.
Voldemort fears death above all else,
while Harry walks into the forest, fully prepared to die.
Thanks, of course, in part to his Council of the Dead,
which Harry was able to summon to his side
using the Resurrection Stone.
Which is a great segue into the second brother, Cadmus,
the creator of the Resurrection Stone,
and, as far as I'm concerned, the Cruciatus Curse.
According to the story,
Cadmus was an arrogant man who sought to humiliate Death.
So he asked Death
for a stone that could call the dead back away from him.
And while he does get or make the stone,
he discovers it doesn't really work the way he'd hoped.
Because while he can successfully summon the girl
he had hoped to marry in life,
he finds that she is in constant suffering.
"Yet she was sad and cold, separated from him as by a veil.
"Though she had returned to the mortal world,
"she did not truly belong there and suffered.
"Finally, the second brother,
"driven mad with hopeless longing, killed himself,
"so as truly to join her."
Gosh, the wording there is so specific
that there is no chance it is a mistake.
Like, by a veil, that is 1000% a reference
to the veil in the Death Chamber that Sirius falls through.
Which, in case you were curious, we also have a theory
that maybe the Peverell brothers were responsible
for creating the veil itself.
Full video by clicking the card.
But I digress.
It is pretty clear from the description
of Cadmus's use of the stone,
that both for the living and the dead,
the Resurrection Stone causes insufferable pain,
even if it's not the kind you'd expect.
Really, it's as Dumbledore says.
- Words are, in my not-so-humble opinion,
our most inexhaustible source of magic.
Capable of both inflicting injury, and remedying it.
- And of course, what he means there is that while magic
is obviously very powerful, the non-magic words you say
to another person can be just as damaging
and harmful, or helpful, than even the worst magic.
It's like that old saying,
sticks and stones might break my bones,
but words will leave me emotionally scarred,
and keep me in therapy for the rest of my life.
I tell you who really understood this was Umbridge.
Like, sticks and stones might break your bones
but words will leave 16 different scars
on your hand, Potter.
I mean, obviously we don't normally want to experience pain
of any kind, but it's interesting that as kids,
everyone was way more concerned
with bodily harm than mental harm.
Either way, the point is, the pain felt by Cadmus Peverell
and his deceased fiance is not physical pain,
but it is nonstop emotional torture.
Which, I think, clever wizard that he was,
Cadmus was able to convert into a spell,
which if directed at another person,
could cause them to feel that pain in a very physical way.
But thus, the spell is kind of tragic, isn't it?
It means it's not really about torturing someone else.
It's about a way to release your own negative emotions.
Which honestly lines up pretty well
with how Bellatrix explains using the spell to Harry.
"Never used an unforgivable curse before, have you, boy?
"You need to mean them, Potter.
"You need to really want to cause pain, to enjoy it.
"Righteous anger won't hurt me for long.
"I'll show you hard done, shall I?
"I'll give you a lesson."
Now, of course, in her case,
she really is trying to cause pain.
But the takeaway is that you do need
to be really feeling the emotion,
embrace your anger, if you will,
and channel it through yourself into the spell.
The best account we ever get for what it feels like
to be hit with the Cruciatus Curse comes in the graveyard
when Voldemort is using it to torture Harry.
"It was pain beyond anything Harry had ever experienced.
"His very bones were on fire.
"His head was surely splitting along his scar.
"His eyes were rolling madly in his head.
"He wanted it to end, to black, out to die."
It hurts so bad he wants to die,
which is interesting wording because, of course,
in the story, that's exactly what Death wants, isn't it?
And it's exactly how Cadmus felt
until the point where he took his own life.
And perhaps even more interestingly
is that even in such pain, Harry does not pas out.
Normally, if you were in that much pain,
that would be your body's response to protect you
from having to feel it,
and yet Harry stays conscious.
Why? Because this isn't regular physical pain.
It is emotional pain made physical,
and emotional pain demands to be felt.
That's said though,
eventually, Harry himself manages
to overcome the Cruciatus Curse as well,
and no longer feel pain when hit with it,
which, incidentally, comes immediately
after Harry has survived the Avada Kedavra curse
for the second time.
Harry has, again, become a master of death,
and the result, "Harry had been expecting it.
"He knew his body would not be allowed to remain unsullied
"upon the forest floor.
"It must be subjected to humiliation
"to prove Voldemort's victory.
"He was lifted into the air,
"and took all his determination to remain limp,
"yet the pain he expected did not come."
Point is, Harry is not affected by the spell anymore,
which is great for him,
because he's still pretending to be dead in this situation.
And I guess, does Voldemort think this is going
to hurt a dead body?
I don't, is he just, what?
This is weird.
But if you're keeping track,
that means that in becoming a master of death,
Harry is able to overcome two of the unforgivable curses,
which to me furthers the connection
between the unforgivable curses, the Deathly Hallows,
and the Peverell Brothers.
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Speaking of whom,
that brings us to the third brother.
Harry's very own, long-dead ancestor, Ignotus Peverell,
creator of the Invisibility Cloak,
and as far as this theory is concerned,
the Imperius Curse.
Ignotus stands apart from his two brothers as the youngest
and the wisest.
And he does not seek to overpower or humiliate Death,
simply to avoid him, or perhaps in a more realistic setting,
just be left alone and protect the ones he loves.
Similarly, the Imperius Curse stands apart
from the other two unforgivable curses.
While all three can be used to terrible ends,
and are very dangerous in the wrong hands,
the experience of being hit by the first two
is very different from being hit
by the Imperius Curse.
Avada Kedavra obviously kills you,
Cruciatus makes you feel like your literal bones
are on fire, but Imperius,
"it was the most wonderful feeling.
"Harry felt a floating sensation as every thought
"and worry in his head was wiped gently away,
"leaving nothing but a vague untraceable happiness.
"He stood there feeling immensely relaxed,
"only dimly aware of everyone watching him."
Wait, I'm sorry, is the Imperius Curse
just like meditation?
Because I don't know about you guys,
but sometimes I feel like maybe I could go
for a dose of Imperius Curse, you know,
in a controlled setting with someone I trust.
You see what I mean?
Rather than death or pain, it's bliss.
And yes, complete control over the other person.
But if Ignotus is indeed the creator of the Imperius Curse,
then consider his intended use.
It's just to hide and protect.
He never had any intention to kill or cause harm,
or in this case, enslave people.
His goal was just to turn people away
in an almost kind, even peaceful, manner.
Obviously it gets put to terrible use eventually.
But can we really hold that against Ignotus
if that wasn't its original intended use?
I don't know, maybe, probably?
I guess we can all see how we feel
about whoever invented AI in like another five years, right?
Or does that really lay on one person's shoulders?
Or did it like invent itself?
I don't know, but in the meantime, look,
it drew me as a wizard.
What do you mean, yeah, yes it is, shut up.
It looks exactly like me.
Okay, he has a way better chin,
and I should do my hair different.
Getting back on track though, what continues
to just blow my mind about this theory is how the Hallows
and Harry's mastery of each one continues to match up
with Harry's conquering of the corresponding curse.
For example, it always kind of bothered me
in Goblet of Fire when Barty Crouch Jr.
is putting the class under the Imperius Curse
and Harry is able to just shake it off
on his very first try.
"And then he heard Mad-Eye Moody's voice echoing
"in some distant chamber of his empty brain.
"Jump onto the desk, jump onto the desk.
"Harry bent his knees obediently,
"preparing to spring.
"Jump onto the desk.
"Why, though?
"Another voice had awoken in the back of his brain.
"Stupid thing to do, really, said the voice.
"Jump onto the desk.
"No, I don't think I will, thanks.
"said the other voice a little more firmly.
"No, I really don't want to."
Like, I get it, Harry's just naturally gifted
at Defense Against the Dark Arts.
But if ever there was a just, Harry's better than everyone
because he is the chosen one moment, this is it.
Because it's not like it's always super easy for him.
I mean, it takes him like a whole year to learn
how to do the Patronus charm.
And he never gets very good at Occlumency, like at all.
But in one go, with a powerful Death Eater casting
an unforgivable curse on him,
he shakes it off on the first try.
You kidding me?
But this theory explains it, because at that moment,
Harry is already the master of the Invisibility Cloak,
and the spell and the object are linked
by their creator, Ignotus Peverell.
And you might think like, wait, I mean,
sure the cloak is extraordinary,
but how would Harry's use of it be any different
than another person's?
And I'm right there with you.
But Dumbledore, as ever, does seem to discern a difference.
"But the cloak I took out of vain curiosity,
"and so it could never have worked for me
"as it works for you, it's true owner."
Actually, and this feels like no coincidence at this point,
but we mentioned earlier that throughout the story,
Harry actually attempts
to use two out of the three unforgivable curses.
Crucio on Bellatrix,
which Harry does hit her with the spell,
but he doesn't really succeed
in causing her much pain at all.
Largely, I think, because Harry is not the type
of person to try to channel his emotional pain
into another person.
And then he also attempts the Imperius Curse
when they're breaking into Gringotts.
But when you look at these examples,
Crucio is used moments after Sirius
has passed through the veil,
and the Resurrection Stone brings someone back,
as if they're separated by a veil.
And it's like, in that moment,
all Harry wants to do is bring Sirius back.
And it's almost as if instinctively he knows
how to see him again,
and reaches for the correct brand of magic,
the Cruciatus Curse.
- Crucio! (spell crackling and booming)
(Bellatrix screaming) - Imperio, Harry is much
more successful with,
and uses to control the goblin, Bogrod,
to let them into the vaults at Gringotts.
But goodness me,
do you know what Harry happens to be wearing
the very first time he uses this spell?
The Invisibility Cloak.
Ah, like, the pattern connecting these things
is just too real.
In the story of the three brothers,
arguably Ignotus is the only one to master his hallow,
while the other two become victims of theirs.
Harry, on the other hand, masters all three.
When Cadmus uses the Resurrection Stone,
it causes him the unbearable pain of the Cruciatus Curse,
and he wants to die.
But when Harry uses it,
it's so that he can be peacefully escorted to death.
And afterwards, he's no longer affected
by the Cruciatus Curse.
Antioch seeks to conquer Death and be invincible
by using the Avada Kedavra curse with the Elder Wand.
Whereas, Harry allows himself to be hit
by the unblockable Avada Kedavra Curse
with the unbeatable Elder Wand, and remains unaffected.
And as if you need any more convincing at this point,
here's where things get super fun.
Even the names match up with the spells.
A, Antioch and Avada Kedavra.
C for Cadmus and the Cruciatus Curse.
And I for Ignotus and the Imperius Curse.
A pattern that actually continues to be carried over
to the only confirmed creator of another dark magic spell
in the series, the Half-blood Prince and Sectumsempra.
Or should I say Severus Snape
and Sectumsempra? (mimics explosion)
Ah, I love this theory so much.
Big shout out, one more time,
to @brettsthoughts over on TikTok.
Again, there is a link in the description
down to his original posting
if you wanna see that or his other Harry Potter content,
all really good.
So definitely go check it out.
(upbeat music)
♪ Hey, brother ♪
Thanks for watching today's video, as always, guys.
If you wanna see how the three brothers
also created the veil, (bell dinging)
and maybe some other magical artifacts,
you can check out this video right here by Ben.
Otherwise, until next time,
I will see you in another life, brother.