Rauru

This article is about the Ocarina of Time character. For the location from The Adventure of Link, see Town of Rauru.

"I am Rauru, one of the ancient Sages..."

— Rauru

Rauru is a character from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Rauru is the Sage of Light, and also one of the Ancient Sages who long ago helped construct the Temple of Time. He names Link the "Hero of Time".

Presumably, the fame of Rauru became so great that a town in Zelda II: The Adventure of Link was named after him. Additionally, a stained glass window of Rauru holding the Master Sword, together with windows featuring the other Sages, Ganon, and the Triforce can be seen in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. In The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, the Rauru Hillside, located in the southeast part of the Great Hyrule Forest region, northeast of Hyrule Castle, is also named after him.

Biography[]

Spoiler warning: Plot or ending details follow.

Rauru is the first person Link meets after having been sealed in the Temple of Time for seven years. The wise old sage tells Link that after he was sealed away, Ganondorf entered the Sacred Realm and touched the Triforce. The sacred golden triangles split apart, leaving Ganondorf with only the Triforce of Power, but still powerful enough to conquer Hyrule and turn it into a land of despair, of which he became the ruler after usurping Hyrule's throne. Rauru tells Link that the only way to stop the Evil King is to awaken the five other Sages in the five temples of Hyrule. Before he sends him out into the world to fulfill this dangerous task, he gives him the Light Medallion, adding his power to Link's.

After Link has awakened the five other Sages, Rauru telepathically contacts him and tells him that someone is waiting for him in the Temple of Time. Later, together with the other Sages, Rauru helps create a bridge to Ganon's Castle. Strangely, in the game's ending sequence, all the Sages except for Rauru are shown, perhaps indicating that he is incapable of leaving the Temple of Light.

According to the book Hyrule Historia, Rauru followed Link's adventures before Link drew the Master Sword as the owl Kaepora Gaebora. Kaepora Gaebora also appears after Link has pulled the sword. Taken literally this means that Kaepora Gaebora can exist independently from Rauru, only possessed by him till a certain time. However, this statement may also merely be a mistake on the part of the writers, intended to mean that Kaepora Gaebora is always a form of Rauru.

Spoiler warning: Spoilers end here.

Non-canonical appearances[]

Non-canon warning: This article or section contains non-canonical information that is not considered to be an official part of the Legend of Zelda series and should not be considered part of the overall storyline.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time manga[]

Rauru is only a spirit who lives on in the Chamber of Sages. He tells Link that the youth was born into the guardian house that served the King of Hyrule. He goes on to say that Link's father was killed in battle and his mother brought him to the Great Deku Tree.

Non-canon warning: Non-canonical information ends here.

Theory[]

Theory warning: This section contains theoretical information based on the research of one or several other users. It has not been officially verified by Nintendo and its factual accuracy is disputed.

True form of Kaepora Gaebora[]

It is believed by many that Rauru is the true form of Kaepora Gaebora, the wise owl that helps Link throughout Ocarina of Time. A major reason for this is that a Gossip Stone seen in the game states that Kaepora Gaebora is the reincarnation of an ancient Sage, and Rauru is implied to have been residing within the Temple of Light for ages, awaiting the time when the Sacred Realm would be opened. Kaepora Gaebora's statement that he thought the tales of the Hero of Time were "merely a legend" could be interpreted as contradictory to this claim; however, it is quite conceivable that over many long years, Rauru himself began to doubt the Prophecy of the Great Cataclysm and the Hero of Time.

Rauru's ages-long vigil in the Temple of Light would also explain why he does not appear with the other Sages at the end of Ocarina of Time: because he can only exist outside the Temple of Light in the form of Kaepora Gaebora, who is shown earlier in the game's ending sequence. This is the case in the noncanonical Ocarina of Time manga, in which Rauru states that his body has withered and died long ago, and that only his soul remains. Additionally, Rauru's continued activity across time as Kaepora Gaebora could explain why he did not have to be awakened by the Hero of Time.

Other hints at Rauru and Kaepora Gaebora being one and the same also exist. For instance, Rauru seems to already know Link's name when he first meets him in the Chamber of Sages. One way he could have learned Link's name is if he had met him before, which Kaepora Gaebora had seven years earlier. Additionally, Rauru's robes are the same color as Kaepora Gaebora's feathery body, and his facial expressions and bushy eyebrows could be seen as mirroring those of the owl. Kaepora Gaebora also seems to hold extensive knowledge of Hyrule and its history—knowledge someone who had been around for ages would have amassed.

This would not be the first or last time two characters turned out to be the same person: the Owl from The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is revealed to be the Wind Fish's spirit, the King of Red Lions from The Wind Waker turns out to be Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule. Using this, it is possible that Kaepora Gaebora could merely be a vessel for Rauru's spirit, as Agahnim and Zant are to Ganon in The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, respectively. It was later confirmed in Hyrule Historia that Kaepora Gaebora and Rauru are indeed the same being.

Reincarnation of Gaepora[]

It is possible that Rauru is the reincarnation of Gaepora from The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. Both are wise men who wear similar clothing and Gaepora resembles Rauru's Kaepora Gaebora form in both name and appearance.

Theory warning: Theories end here.

Etymology[]

Given the idea that Rauru is an alternate form of Kaepora Gaebora, it is possible that his name is derived from the Māori word "ruru", meaning owl.