One of Harry Potter's biggest influences on his life was the Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore. Throughout the books and films, he was always there to give Harry and his friends just enough information to keep them from giving up. He also helped in various ways to quell and combat the rise of Voldemort and the Death Eaters. While it might seem that Dumbledore's most exciting adventures occurred with Harry Potter, his past is actually filled with many twists and turns. In fact, it was his biggest past regret that ultimately led to his death.
In the books, Dumbledore finds himself in possession of Marvolo Gaunt's Resurrection Stone ring. As Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows explains, the stone can be used to summon the spirits of dead loved ones. So naturally, Dumbledore wanted to use the stone for those exact reasons but found himself facing a deadly curse as he put the ring on. When he went to Severus Snape to examine it, Snape questioned why he would do such a thing, to which Dumbledore replied, "I... was a fool. Sorely tempted..." However, the reasoning for his temptation wasn't out of selfishness, but instead a desire to right a wrong made many decades ago.
In his younger years, Dumbledore was very close to his younger sister Ariana. When she was only six, she was attacked by a group of muggles who saw her practicing magic; the resulting trauma left her powers unstable. These same abilities led to an explosion that ended up killing her mother. Now, with Albus as her and their brother Aberforth's guardian, the three traveled together and she was often at his side. This was still the case during Albus' friendship with the future radical wizard Gellert Grindelwald.
Grindelwald had aspirations, which he shared with Albus, of subjugating the muggle world and having wizards take over under the guise that it was for their own good. However, Grindelwald's murderous tendencies and violent acts would suggest otherwise. Aware of what was transpiring, Aberforth confronted the two wizards, explained the madness in their plan and how Ariana had no place in it. Grindelwald emphasized that she would be safe once their dream was realized, but that didn't stop the three boys from having a duel. In the hopes of stopping them, Ariana used her magic, but something backfired between the four of them, leading to her death at just 14 years old.
When Dumbledore figured out that he had found the Resurrection Stone during the events of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, he hoped that he could use it to revive his sister and finally apologize for his past mistakes. Instead, the curse did its work, leaving him with limited time to live. However, this experience also reminded him that the past couldn't be changed and that the best anyone can do is deal with the consequences. Thus, Dumbledore decided to make the most of his fate by having Snape be the one to kill him. In doing so, Snape could gain favor with Lord Voldemort's army and be capable of protecting Harry from the inside. Additionally, Draco Malfoy could be spared the trauma of having to kill someone.
Dumbledore's regrets led to a grave mistake that affected many of the lives around him. But in the tragedy surrounding his past and present, he was able to do his part to forge a better future. While he couldn't save his sister, he was able to finally rectify his past mistakes by doing the right thing one last time.
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