Hyrulean Hotspots: The Temple of Time

The following article is only a theory, and is not meant to be taken as anything more than that. It only reflects the opinion of the writer, and not ZeldaInformer as a whole. That said, enjoy the article!

One of the most impressive locales in the whole of the Legend of Zelda series is the Temple of Time, first introduced in Ocarina of Time. The powerful choral music that serves as its theme makes for an epic atmosphere in an already epic setting. Its two main roles in the game—as a final destination during the child half and as a central headquarters and staging area during the adult half—are both delivered in a style never before seen in the Zelda series, for the Temple of Time is the first Zelda locale to have a true story behind it. While other locations are mentioned by name and given a gameplay function in the earlier releases, most notably the North Castle and Great Palace in The Adventure of Link, none of these places played more than a passing role in the development of the story itself. Important places in future installments followed this trend, such as the Tower of the Gods in The Wind Waker or the Arbiter’s Grounds in Twilight Princess, but none of them, I feel, captured the same magic.

Princess Zelda reveals early on in Ocarina of Time that the Temple of Time was erected by the ancient ones in ages past to serve as a sanctuary for the gateway to the heavenly Sacred Realm, the resting place of the Triforce of legends. The main objective of the first half of the game is to track down the remaining two spiritual stones so that the player can use the titular Ocarina of Time to open the Door of Time, behind which lies that holy portal. This took a similar plot device in A Link to the Past in which the player is charged with finding the three pendants needed to prove his worth so that he can claim the legendary Master Sword and expanded it and immersed it in story detail.

After opening the Door of Time, the player discovers that behind it lies the blade of evil’s bane, which serves as the final key to the Sacred Realm. Not knowing what will happen, but knowing that he must obtain the Triforce before the evil Ganondorf can, the player then draws forth the sword, revealing the true nature of the forces in place to protect the Sacred Realm—the player is sealed away in the Realm for seven years by the Master Sword’s power. Once he awakens from his seven-year slumber, the player realizes that the Pedestal of Time in which the Master Sword rested was designed to test the worthiness of those who might approach it—only the true Hero, the Hero of Time, can draw forth the sword from the stone. The Temple, then, is not only a sanctuary for the entrance to the sacred lands, it is also a proving grounds for the Hero of legends.

But is that really all there is to the Temple of Time? Twilight Princess showed us that this is not the case. Its presentation of the Temple of Time revealed that there was even more to this ancient edifice than Ocarina of Time had let on. The Temple of Time (moved from the city of Hyrule to the more remote Faron Woods) serves yet another role, guarding yet another sacred power—the power of the Oocca, supposed ancestors of the Hylians. That power is the Dominion Rod, which the player can obtain by manipulating the Master Sword pedestal in order to access a secret segment of the Temple of Time. So, indeed, there is more to that sacred place than at first meets the eye.

The Theory: What was the Temple of Time used for?

Many of the locales in the Legend of Zelda series, specifically and especially in the three-dimensional titles, are based on actual structures found in the real world. The Temple of Time is no exception—in fact, it is probably Ocarina of Time‘s foremost example of real-life influences on Hyrulean architecture. It has the look and feel of a Gothic cathedral, with its decorative stained-glass windows, its magnificent exterior, and the sacred altar positioned at the far end of the sanctuary. Hyrulean religion and history is, to a large extent, derived from Judeo-Christian tradition—the Creation story in its original form borrows heavily from the Biblical story of creation, the three Goddesses and the virtues they represent (Power, Wisdom, and Courage) correspond to the Christian Trinity, the Father, the Holy Ghost, and the Son (respectively), and so on and so forth. One can reasonably presume that the similarities between the Temple of Time and cathedral architectures are an extension of these derivatives, and that the Temple of Time was designed like a church because it functions somewhat as a church.

Obviously we can also presume such a function from the name of the place—the Temple of Time. A temple is, according to dictionary.com, “an edifice or place dedicated to the service or worship of a deity or deities.” Within Ocarina of Time, we are told that water spirits are worshiped in the Water Temple, and forest spirits in the Forest Temple; it would only be reasonable to again extend this pattern to each of the elements in turn. Each of these Temples has its own steward race and sage protector as well, and, in fact, it seems that most of them are only reachable by members of that particular people. But what of the Temple of Time?—time is not an element in the same manner that fire or water is, and unlike the other temples, this one is much more accessible. Looking next at the temples in The Wind Waker, we see that the sages pray that the gods continue to bless the Master Sword (and all of Hyrule with it) with the light to banish evil. Obviously the Temple of Time does not serve this role, since obviously it is not needed to carry out the restoration of the Master Sword.

Therefore, given the Temple of Time’s already-established roles as the entrance to the Sacred Realm and the storehouse of the blade of evil’s bane, roles that the elemental temples do not play, I would say that the temple serves as a universal place of worship for the Hero of Time himself, and not a holy place where “spirits of time” are worshiped or where sages remain to pray for the gods’ intercession. The “time” factor exists primarily as a utility for the Hero of Time through his use of the Ocarina of Time and the Master Sword. This function is more befitting, since its other uses already reveal that the Temple is a place of supreme importance, and, among the pantheon of Hyrulean deities, the greatest are the three goddesses, with whom the Hero is interminably connected. The Hero’s ability to appear when Hyrule is in danger, his designation as the “savior” all seem to point to his existence as a divine Messianic figure—a man, fully mortal, who yet transcends human mortality.

Were there many other such places dedicated to revering heroes of the past? I could only imagine that it would be so, but it grieves me that, being an action-adventure game first, and not an RPG, none of the games in the series feature more than one or two sites of reverence to the heroes of old—The Wind Waker featured perhaps the only other location to specifically do so through the Tower of the Gods. Looking at the Roman-based culture and the circulating tales of a legendary Hero as seen in Twilight Princess, one could guess that each city had its own temple dedicated to a patron hero. Kakariko has the spirit’s spring—Eldin is said to protect his province at the behest of the gods, and his name is derived from the goddess Din, suggesting a link between the two. Lake Hylia features a full-fledged shrine surrounding its spirit’s spring, and there seem to be regular pilgrimages there in times of need. The Goron mine, while obviously used to mine precious ores (or rocks for eating by the Gorons), doubles as a sacred place that guards the ancient Hero’s bow. However, this being the case, we still have not seen any direct examples of these places being used for any religious or ceremonial function.

How might the ancient Hylians have celebrated worship? The Wind Waker suggests that they did so through music:

This is the Wind Waker! It is a baton of sorts that was used long ago when the people played music in prayer to the gods. In those days, simply using it allowed one to borrow the power of the gods!

That Wind Waker you hold was used long ago to conduct us sages when we played our song to call upon the gods. In those days, it was always the king who conducted for us… Please… Tell the king that I will still play…even in the next world!

Did they consider the Hero to be a god? I cannot be sure. But I am sure that the power of the gods is, in most cases, intimately tied to the Hero and to his heroic destiny. The altar in the Temple of Time also responds to song, as its primary role in Ocarina of Time is to open the gates of time:

Ye who owns three Spiritual Stones

And play the Song of Time.

And each of the other Hyrulean temples, in turn, has its own song, each of them intertwined with the motif of Time:

The flow of time is always cruel…

This melody will lead a child back to the desert.

The sages, songs, and even the temples themselves, specifically this Temple of Time, all seem to be centered around the Hero of Time and his ability to travel back and forth between past and future in his efforts to save Hyrule. That the Ocarina of Time, three ‘symbols of virtue’ and the Master Sword are also needed to enter the Sacred Realm and obtain the Triforce also suggests that the Triforce was intended specifically to be wielded by one with the qualities of that chosen Hero.

All of this points to the Hero as an object of worship, or at least of saintly reverence, and, as such, I believe that the Temple of Time is the foremost site dedicated to such praise.

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