Sirius is already dead, Rowling killed him to express the intense feelings after losing someone you love. And the things you can learn about, that life goes on and that you can't get stuck or leave your responsibilities behind. But sure that veil is really myterious. Is it used for excecutions maybe? (cause of the amphitheater). And those voices, are they trapped somewhere between life and death? How can we know?

Remember.. Jo said not to cut Sirius in OotP film because he will be an "important" character.

Idk how I missed this topic before. =D *pokes the veil*

I agree. As a metaphor for death, the veil works perfectly. Especially when it comes to the 'mysterious' bit. Some ppl - a lot actually - have suggested that JK should indeed keep the veil as enwrapped in mystery as it has been so far. And even though I agree that it would be somewhat fascinating to just leave the subject of death or the symbol of death in the air, I really hope she clarifies it by the end of the series. >.>

I guess that pretty much sums up everything we know abt the veil at the moment. Well put

Never thought of that. It's definitely an interesting thought... *pokes the Unspeakables*

Again, I concur It's actually one of the strangest deaths I've heard of - literary or not. A highly odd way to seal the fate of such an important character. But as many of you have pointed out, Sirius' departure has to signify something, to have a deeper meaning...

So far all we have are questions =/

Umm I doubt it, and at the same time, I hope it's not the case. But JK strengthens the point that death is irreversable and final - even DD tells Harry that there is no spell to reverse it. And she did repeat again and again that Sirius is in fact, dead. I tend to rule out his 'coming back' as an option in this case. Maybe JK will surprise us all, though

I think the veil is a gateway to the world of the dead. I think the Ministry was trying to find a way to communicate with the dead but its just a theory and i dunno why is was all out in the open.

I HATE THE VEIL.

Now that's an answer I can live with. If it's part of the fabric of the universe then sure nobody knows how it came to be or how it works and the Ministry would want to study it.

Remember in Chalker's Demons of the Dancing Gods when the angles were helping the Devine create the universe they couldn't make all the laws of physics and magic work together. They needed a fudge factor in the form of a lamp that could grant anybody ONE free with. (Making a second wish had consequences.) Antony did not address the question but the hourglass in The Incarnations of Immortality seems to me to be on the same order.

Or maybe the Veil is just the little brother to the Guardian in Star Trek’s City on the Edge of Forever.

I think behind the veil someone will lead a shall we say, cursed death, almost like a ghost, neither here nor there, so I dont there is a way to get them back to life after they go behind the veil, but there might be a way to send the people beyond the veil on.. totally my theories, could be totally wrong!

I think that Jo used the veil as a physical representation of what was the limit of life and death. In sense, Harry went through the veil at King's Cross and saw what was on the other side to him. Throughout the books, death has been very important and yet very mysterious. I think the veil was used to convey this message to readers.

Sirius was avada kadavrad into the veil, he is dead. The question is do you have to be dead to go beyond the veil and if you're not dead and gobeyond the veil is teir any way of coming back. Eiher way I doubt anyone could come back once beyond the veil.

I read somewhere that JK Rowling's meaning behind the book is all about death, and how we should accept it. So perhaps it is linked?

The veil is a mystery, thats just it, the mynistry wanted to study it because of this fact. All anyone really knows is people that go beyond the veil are no longer part of this world cause if they were Harry could have contacted Sirius using the two way mirror. We also know that people who go beyond the veil can't come back and for some reason people who have whitnessed death can hear these people beyond the veil but not speaking words, just some sotrt of mumbling. It's quite a strange piece of work that can't really be explained, it's something beyond anyones understanding.

It is my own guess but perhaps the veil is a way of communicating with people who have died from someone who had witnessed the persons death???

i'd always thought of the veil as a sort of holding place for anyone who was to fall through it. that would sort of explain why sirius couldnt communicate with harry after failing through it

personally i think that those who die go beyond the veil. it is sort of like a doorway to heaven in my perspective. you can walk around it but the only way to enter is through death.Harry and Luna can hear the voices beyond because they both have witnessed death. just like they can see the horses that pull the carriages to Hogwarts. what i am confused about is why Harry has never been able to see the horses before the death of Cedric Diggory, Harry never saw his father James die, no, but his mother Lily was in the room right in front of him when Voldemort murderd her. i bet many other people caught on to that. I have just always wondered that.

I feel that the veil might have been something of an experiment like a portal to death that people can come back through so that they understand (something that has been bugging humanity for ages) what happens after death. It could have also been Rowling's way of saying that sirus is dead and never coming back.

And HPLover101 i think harry never did see his mother die, i mean he was put in his crib and couldn't see his mother nor voldemort, but its only a theory i can't remember anything about it from the books.

I think that the Veil may be an experiment gone wrong. The Ministry could have been trying to take the dead and make them live but it turned out to have the reverse side effects and instead, turned the living into the dead. I thin kthat the voices heard by Lun aand Harry were those of dead people who went through the Veil.

I answered a question similar to this in another thread. I just think that the veil is a shortcut to wizard heaven.

I think the veil is a place that trapped spirits lurk. When they're trapped neither In the mortal world, or heaven. They're trapped in the inbetween.

It's so sad that sirius is lost behind that horrible veil...........