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In Harry Potter, can a boggart really hurt you?


When it appeared as a snake to Parvati, would it really be able to bite or choke her, or is it just scaring without actually being able to attack?



Answer




Lupin decided to use a Boggart for Harry to practice the Patronus Charm on after rejecting the idea of practicing with a real Dementor, because bringing a real Dementor into Hogwarts would be too dangerous.



“Ah yes,’ said Lupin, when Harry reminded him of his promise at the end of class. ‘Let me see … how about eight o’clock on Thursday evening? The History of Magic classroom should be large enough … I’ll have to think carefully about how we’re going to do this … we can’t bring a real Dementor into the castle to practise on …”
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 12 (The Patronus)




In addition, Lupin described a Boggart turned into a Dementor as "the nearest we'll get to a real Dementor", which means that there is a difference between a Boggart in the form of a Dementor and an actual Dementor.



“What’s that?’ said Harry.


‘Another Boggart,’ said Lupin, stripping off his cloak. ‘I’ve been combing the castle ever since Tuesday, and very luckily, I found this one lurking inside Mr Filch’s filing cabinet. It’s the nearest we’ll get to a real Dementor. The Boggart will turn into a Dementor when he sees you, so we’ll be able to practise on him. I can store him in my office when we’re not using him; there’s a cupboard under my desk he’ll like.”
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 12 (The Patronus)



So - the Boggart can have some of the effects of the creature it transforms into, but likely has a weakened version of their power instead of their full abilities.


Also, when the Boggart turned into a full moon, it didn't cause Lupin to transform into a werewolf.




“The legless spider had vanished. For a second, everyone looked wildly around to see where it was. Then they saw a silvery white orb hanging in the air in front of Lupin, who said ‘Riddikulus!’ almost lazily.”
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 7 (The Boggart in the Wardrobe)



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