• Welcome to ZD Forums! You must create an account and log in to see and participate in the Shoutbox chat on this main index page.

OoT-N64 General OOT Question

Joined
Nov 25, 2010
Location
Montreal, Canada
Gender
Male
We all know that the Temple of Time was located inside a church. Was religion ever practiced in the Zelda Series? If so, what was the name of this religion?
 

Azure Sage

March onward forever...
Staff member
ZD Legend
Comm. Coordinator
I don't think the Legend of Zelda series has ever actually had a "religion". The closest thing to a religion it's had is probably the story of the three golden goddesses that the Great Deku Tree tells Link in the beginning of Ocarina of Time. Although, I'm not sure if that qualifies as a religion. And I don't think it had a name. The Temple of Time being a church was probably little more than a design choice by the developers.
 
As Azure Sage noted, there is no one dominant religion in Hyrule but rumor has it that prior to the creation of the third game, Nintendo intended for Hyrule's religion so to speak to be modeled off Christianity. That said, the decision was ultimately dropped on the grounds of polarizing fans, some who would no doubt fear Nintendo was intermixing religion with fantasy. In the NES original, for example, the spell book used in tandem with the Magic Wand to emit fire was dubbed the "Bible" in the Japanese version. Another interesting similarity to note is the Trinity reference through the Triforce although that pertains more to a Japanese dynasty symbol which Miyamoto once observed and took inspiration from than a specific religion.

The closest we see to religion in Ocarina of Time specifically is through the spirits inhabiting several sacred objects. This is likely a reference to Shintoism, the native religion of Japan. In said belief, everything is deemed to possess a spirit of kami of its own. Prominent examples include the Great Deku Tree and Jabu-Jabu worshiped by the Kokiri and Zora, respectively. While to a Western gamer, these fail to qualify under the traditional notion of an omnipotent "deity", to the Japanese and other oriental players, these are very much so gods, the ones who govern the laws of nature.
 
Joined
Jul 7, 2012
I dont know if you have played/finished SS yet, so i hate to spoil it and i Dont know how to put in that Spoilers tag thin in posts, so i wont say much about it. However sense it is a Temple maby their was a Group that Used this temple to worship Time. and as for a religion i do know that their are 3 Main Goddesses in the legend of zelda. Din, Nayru, and Farore, . and after they created Hyrule the left behind the Triforce :triforce: . Each piece represented one of the Goddess the Triforce of Power on top, the Triforce of Courage on the right, and the Triforce of Wisdom on the left, People have seeked this Relic due to it's power. Now idk if they do have a name for the people who Worshiped these Goddesses. but this is to my knowledge one of the major Religions in Legend of Zelda.
 

Awesome

The Creepy Uncle
Joined
Feb 10, 2012
Location
Swaggin Roost Island
I would assume that since the Goddesses are worshipped...that they have a religion. What that religion is, I couldn't say. Maybe Hylism...
 
Last edited:

Users who are viewing this thread

Top Bottom