• 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.

Does Link inherit the unconscious memories of past incarnations?

**Before I begin I want to point out that this theory isn't trying to convince you of anything but rather highlight the possibility of such an idea and open it up to conversation. I myself am not entirely convinced by my own theory but thought it would be an interesting topic nonetheless.**

**Note that I'll be using in-game facts and details along with the use of the Hyrule Historia (which is canon even if you don't want it to be.)**

This theory primarily deals with Link's Awakening. Link's Awakening is a rather unique chapter in The Legend of Zelda because it takes place within a dream and has very little, if any, impact on the series as a whole. But that doesn't mean that its a pointless or uninteresting adventure...

While playing through Link's Awakening recently I noticed a number of things that started to point towards a rather surreal possibility. The possibility being that the Link of Link's Awakening somehow has, at least in part and however unconsciously, the memories of the Links that existed previous to him.

To make this as simple as I can, dreams are often the product of our unconscious minds and memories. In Link's Awakening there are characters living on Koholint Island that closely resemble characters of whom Link has previously met on his past adventures (LA's Link being the same Link as the one in ALttP, Ages and Seasons). "[Marin and Tarin] Residents of Mabe Village On Koholint Island. Similar characters also appear in Holodrum, and in Hyrule during the Era of the Hero of Time. Tarin and Marin may be the product of Link's memories of Malon and her father Talon, of Lon Lon Ranch." (Hyrule Historia, p.102) It makes sense that Link would have memories of characters he met on his past adventures such as Malon and Talon of Holodrum (seen in Oracle of Seasons)... This also helps me to explain my next point that the characters in Link's Awakening may hold resemblances to, but are not definitive versions of, the characters that previous incarnations of Link have made contact with in the past.

While Marin and Tarin hold striking resemblances to Malon and Talon, which as the Hyrule Historia suggests could be the product of Link's memories, there are other characters within Link's Awakening who hold striking resemblances to characters that the Link of Link's Awakening never met...

The Wind Fish for example has a very striking resemblance to Levias from Skyward Sword, and the owl that guides Link through Link's Awakening has a strong resemblance to Kaepora Gaebora, the owl (who is later revealed as the Sage Rauru) from Ocarina of Time.
How could Link of Link's Awakening dream of characters so closely resembling characters which he never met?
While it could just be coincidence that Link of Link's Awakening dreamt of a giant flying whale and a guardian owl, I think its important to note that the characters of Levias and Kaepora Gaebora are two very important characters in the Zelda lore; Kaepora Gaebora/Rauru, the Sage of Light who built the Temple of Time and Levias, a sky spirit appointed by the Goddess Hylia to be the protector of the skies and the location of the Triforce, so surely there has to be something in that?

Note also that the characters of Kaepora Gaebora and Levias exist before the 'Hero Defeated' timeline, meaning that anything that occurs in the future after Ocarina of Time on the 'Adult' and 'Child' Timelines hold no sway over Link's (of Link's Awakening) memories. For example, there isn't a character in Link's Awakening that resembles any of the characters found in other games that occur after Ocarina of Time, so at least his potential for memories of characters past which Link never met are held up by the timeline.

So, if Link of Link's Awakening does indeed posses the unconscious memories of past Links (such as Link of Skyward Sword and Link of Ocarina of Time) then the question is how?

Originally I thought the answer lay in the much contested theory of 'The Spirit of The Hero' which would mean that Link's spirit would constantly need to recycle. However, with no real in-game evidence or proof in the Hyrule Historia to back the theory that Link's spirit constantly recycled (thus retaining the unconscious memories of past adventures) and after deciding that 'The Spirit of a Hero' was a more apt description of future Links' worthiness to wield the Triforce of Courage (given that the Japanese language doesn't have the likes of 'A' and 'The' for descriptive purposes and that it was due to translation rather than original intent of the story), I moved on to other possibilities.

The next (and best reason I could think of) for Link to retain previous memories of past Links was through Zelda's bloodline. Its widly assumed after Skyward Sword that Link and Zelda procreated and their future generations worked on establishing the Kingdom of Hyrule on the surface world beneath the clouds. So we can assume that future generations of Link are in someway part of Zelda's bloodline.

But how would Zelda's blood help future Links retain unconscious memories of the past? Well, we need to travel into another contested theory...

We know that Zelda in Skyward Sword is the Goddess Hylia reborn, and we know that Zelda traveled with Impa to numerous springs to awaken the memories and powers of Hylia within her to strengthen the seal which imprisoned Demise. We know that Hylia is a Goddess but we don't know what she is a Goddess of. Popular theory points to her being the often mentioned Goddess of time, the theory is of course contested but there is evidence to support it.

Firstly, Hylia seems to transcend time itself, she discarded her memories and deity status to be reborn as a resident of Skyloft (Zelda) but was later resurrected within Zelda in Skyward Sword, thus perhaps pointing to the possibility that her soul or spirit is eternal and transcends time itself.
Fi often relates messages to Link from Hylia which 'guide him from the edge of time.'
Hylia's plan to one day put an end to Demise using the Master Sword and a brave hero able to wield the Triforce of Courage also seems to transcend time, could she see the future, how could she have put such a master plan into place if she didn't have some sway over the commodity of time?

In Ocarina of Time, the Ocarina is something that has been passed down for generations, why would Zelda's ancestors have something like an Ocarina of Time at all if they weren't related to some sort of deity, like Hylia.
In Majora's Mask it is said that it is through the Goddess of Time's power that Link can travel back and forth through time. Link also has a flashback to Zelda saying that 'The Goddess of Time is watching over you.' Link's memories of Zelda prompt him to play the Song of Time and escape death by moon in Termina, as a bearer of the spirit of Hylia was it Zelda/Hylia watching over him, is Hylia's power summoned when the Ocarina is played?

If we accept that Hylia is the Goddess of Time and that Zelda is Hylia reborn and that Link and Zelda share a bloodline after Skyward Sword, then its possible that with the blood of the Goddess of Time, that future Links would hold unconscious memories of past, and important, characters...

What say you of this theory, are the Wind Fish and the owl in Link's Awakening in some way related to Rauru and Levias in link's unconscious memories of past adventures through his ancestors' bloodline?



(Of course I know that as far as design goes the connections between the characters are all just references made by Nintendo in the way they often recycle characters for other games, but play along with the theory.)


 
Last edited:

Jirohnagi

Braava Braava
Joined
Feb 18, 2010
Location
Soul Sanctum
Gender
Geosexual
I think in regards to Zelda being Hylia it's not so much as her becoming a goddess but her ancestral memories being awakened, literally race memory, i think i will quote a bit of Jim Butcher here, one of his characters known as The Archive is the sum of all human knowledge and she able to know things immediately if they are written down, the actually person known as Ivy is merely the host to The Archive which is literally pure memory it is inherited down the Salem bloodline, mother to daughter. This seems like it would in fact apply to both Zelda and Link and possibly Ganondorf. The spirits of Hylia and the Hero are what contains the memories and the sum of knowledge of their shared pasts (you could argue that Ganondorfs spirit is one of hatred and vengeance), but because they are only mortal beings and the spirits themselves are so very much more than what they could handle stoppages are put in place, so that they don't remember it all in one go and that past choices don't affect current ones, what happened to SS Zelda was that she went on a journey to open herself to her spiritual past, in a way Link does this as well via the various dungeons after all what is a hero if he cannot complete a test? But in Links case his ancestral memories could in fact bleed into his current life mostly as dreams and so he would likely see figures from and ancient past but in a new way, such as the owl. As for the Ocarina of Time, in each lifetime at some point each incarnation of Hylia would become aware of the importance of the Ocarina and then hand it to their descendants when it would be needed most. I still go by the Ocarina of Time being a refined Timeshift stone.... a portable one if you will.
 

CrimsonCavalier

Fuzzy Pickles
Joined
Mar 27, 2015
Location
United States
Gender
XY
Well, I havne't finished Skyward Sword or read the HH, so I can't really comment on the Zelda/Goddess aspect of the story, but I REALLY enjoy the part about the dreams, the characters, etc., because it's something I had honestly never thought about. Specifically, Marin/Malon Tarin/Talon ... that is something that, now that I'm thinking about it, I can't believe I never pieced together. Or at least even thought about. Even without the Zelda/Hylia bit, it makes sense that somehow Link is dreaming about stuff that he has never experienced, which is a really cool concept to think about in terms of the Zelda story.

Even if I consider the HH bollocks (which I do), this is still a really awesome concept, and it makes me want to go back and replay Link's Awakening to see what other things could be associated with this theory.
 

VitaTempusN92

Hero of Time! The True Zelda Genius!
Joined
Feb 9, 2013
Location
Trapped in Darkness :(
Gender
Trans-Female
Interesting theory! Though, if you're implying that this could mean all the Links are the same guy in spirit, then I'm afraid to say there is official canon lore proving that wrong:

1) Hero's Shade
2) Hero of Winds
3) Street Pass Grandpa from ALBW

The Hero's Shade is the undead form of TP Link's ancestor, the Hero of Time, confirming that since the both Link's exist in the same world at the same time, OoT Link and TP Link can't be the same guy in spirit. Then there's WW Link who is confirmed to have no connection to the Links before him at all, not even spiritually. And finally, the Street Pass Grandpa who, seeing he wears a tunic like Link's but with no hat and has sword and shield his own that are much like Link's proves he is obviously a previous Link who came before ALBW Link. And if I had to guess, he would be the ALttP Link as an old man. Plus, since he is still alive in that game, that makes his presence in ALBW the biggest evidence of all.

Also, as the whole Levias and Windfish thing, it's confirmed that the dream that Link entered is mostly the Windfish's dream, and barely Link's. Since Link's mind is connected into the Windfish's dream, it's possibly that part of the dream could be from Link's mind but the dream is mostly windfish's dream. And my theory is that like Jabu Jabu and the Ocean King, the Windfish could also be a descendant of Levias.

I do believe that there are Links who reincarnate but only certain ones, as I believe there multiple Link spirits. For example, I believe that mostly both the Hero of Time (OoT's Past Hero of Time history and backstory and OoT/MM) and the Hero of Legend (SS, TP, and ALttP) have multiple incarnations. Like in OoT it's confirmed that Hero of Time has lived before and the Hero of Legend is incarnated in the Sky Era, Twilight Era, and the Era of Light and Dark. Same two spirits but different incarnations. I could go on and on about this and talk about my theories and takes on the other Link spirits but that would take days, if not months.

So I see and respect your point about past incarnations, I just believe things differently. And yes, I also do believe it's possible for a Link who has lived before to dream about his past lives.
 
Interesting theory! Though, if you're implying that this could mean all the Links are the same guy in spirit, then I'm afraid to say there is official canon lore proving that wrong:

1) Hero's Shade
2) Hero of Winds
3) Street Pass Grandpa from ALBW

The Hero's Shade is the undead form of TP Link's ancestor, the Hero of Time, confirming that since the both Link's exist in the same world at the same time, OoT Link and TP Link can't be the same guy in spirit. Then there's WW Link who is confirmed to have no connection to the Links before him at all, not even spiritually. And finally, the Street Pass Grandpa who, seeing he wears a tunic like Link's but with no hat and has sword and shield his own that are much like Link's proves he is obviously a previous Link who came before ALBW Link. And if I had to guess, he would be the ALttP Link as an old man. Plus, since he is still alive in that game, that makes his presence in ALBW the biggest evidence of all.

Also, as the whole Levias and Windfish thing, it's confirmed that the dream that Link entered is mostly the Windfish's dream, and barely Link's. Since Link's mind is connected into the Windfish's dream, it's possibly that part of the dream could be from Link's mind but the dream is mostly windfish's dream. And my theory is that like Jabu Jabu and the Ocean King, the Windfish could also be a descendant of Levias.

I do believe that there are Links who reincarnate but only certain ones, as I believe there multiple Link spirits. For example, I believe that mostly both the Hero of Time (OoT's Past Hero of Time history and backstory and OoT/MM) and the Hero of Legend (SS, TP, and ALttP) have multiple incarnations. Like in OoT it's confirmed that Hero of Time has lived before and the Hero of Legend is incarnated in the Sky Era, Twilight Era, and the Era of Light and Dark. Same two spirits but different incarnations. I could go on and on about this and talk about my theories and takes on the other Link spirits but that would take days, if not months.

So I see and respect your point about past incarnations, I just believe things differently. And yes, I also do believe it's possible for a Link who has lived before to dream about his past lives.


No, I'm not saying that Link is the same guy, far from it which is why i said I gave up on 'The Spirit of the Hero' thing. I'm saying that Link is his own person each time, he proves his worth to be able to wield the Triforce of Courage. I hold no stock in his soul/spirit repeating for him to be the same guy. My point here was that he could have their memories.

If i thought he was the same guy i wouldn't have needed the Zelda Bloodline stuff or a theory at all.
 
Last edited:
Joined
May 7, 2015
Many of the games attempt to attach Link to a bloodline of some sort. For the most obvious example, there's OOT Link and TP Link.

Your idea might explain a few things about Link's Awakening. I always figured that in hindsight, these characters were echoes of their OOT counterparts, and what might have been. Was it part of the Wind Fish's memory or OOT Link's memory? It's a tough question.

I do have to say the bloodline on Link's part is so beyond messed up.

For example, supposedly LTTP Link was part of the "Line of Knights", supposedly a requirement for becoming the Hero. Did OOT Link die or was he just defeated so soundly that he couldn't assist in the end? There's LBW which had a lot of us raising an eyebrow about "Gramps". In Spirit Tracks, a WW Link lookalike just *happens* to be living with one of Link's old crewmates, and we keep meeting the descendants of all the other characters. WW Link had an OOT Link heirloom which would typically imply a blood relation. Between LTTP and Wind Waker, it makes you wonder if Mr. Tenyearoldbrainwhodoesn'tunderstandromance was sleeping around.

Part of me wonders if we're to assume OOT Link was actually left behind in some form whenever time was rewound. He never did any true time-travel, he just moved his consciousness up and down his own body's life. So what really happened when Zelda returned him to his past?

I never liked the split. More questions than answers. Curse you, Nintendo...
 

VitaTempusN92

Hero of Time! The True Zelda Genius!
Joined
Feb 9, 2013
Location
Trapped in Darkness :(
Gender
Trans-Female
For example, supposedly LTTP Link was part of the "Line of Knights", supposedly a requirement for becoming the Hero. Did OOT Link die or was he just defeated so soundly that he couldn't assist in the end? There's LBW which had a lot of us raising an eyebrow about "Gramps". In Spirit Tracks, a WW Link lookalike just *happens* to be living with one of Link's old crewmates, and we keep meeting the descendants of all the other characters. WW Link had an OOT Link heirloom which would typically imply a blood relation. Between LTTP and Wind Waker, it makes you wonder if Mr. Tenyearoldbrainwhodoesn'tunderstandromance was sleeping around.

Um, no, in WW, the King of Red Lions specifically states that WW Link has no connection to the Hero of Time whatsoever. Watch this part of the scene with Jabun:



Here's his quote that I'm talking about:

King of Red Lions: The one I have brought with me has no connection to the legendary one.

This explicitly means that WW Link and OoT Link are not related by blood.
 
Joined
May 7, 2015
I' m very aware of that quote. And he would know how?

The fact is, the game contradicts itself on this matter. Remember that the King was looking for the Hero of Time specifically. It's like Zuko looking for the Avatar. Only in this case, there's genuinely no way he's going to find him.
 

Justac00lguy

BooBoo
Joined
Jul 1, 2012
Gender
Shewhale
That's an interesting idea. Like sort of how heroes, connected to their ancestors, always have an inkling of their past and how their enemies somehow know them greatly. Kind of reminds me of Aragorn in The Lord of the Rings and how he has this connection to the Kings of Númenor. I guess it's somewhat of a hero's trait in the fantasy genre.

Though I'm more interested in why. I know it's not wise to seek the answer in a fantasy game that has so many loose ends and, but I guess that's theorising at the end of the day. Anyway, for Link to have some sort of memory of his past ancestors - maybe not even by blood - there has to be something that causes this. My theory is that it's the Triforce.

Think about it, what's the one thing that ties together everything in the world of Hyrule? What's the one thing that is essentially fate? The history of Hyrule is locked inside the Triforce; it is basically everything. Every time Link is reincarnated, or born anew, it's because the Triforce intended it to happen and it just Is. So just by being tied to the Triforce, an actual piece, means that it could very well unlock some sort of hidden connection to the Triforce's past - including past heroes.

Remember as well at the beginning of the Oracle games and Link's Awakening. He touches the Triforce directly, well holds it if I recall, and it transports him to a foreign land. This foreign land is most likely also part of his dream, but more so it the wacky dream that has no real connection to everyday life whereas the dream of Link's Awakening is the more surreal dream with familiarities. My point is that by actually directly touching the Triforce, it could have transported Link into a journey of the Triforce's mind somehow - maybe that's why he visits three places. It doesn't explain why the Triforce intended this to happen, but maybe it had something to with Twinrova and their plan to revive Ganondorf. The game doesn't explain why they survived or how they got access to these worlds, but their sorcery may have something to do with this.
 

NintendoCN

Team Captain
Joined
Dec 6, 2014
Location
North Dakota
Gender
Protagonist
I think that each link is chosen by the goddesses at birth, and when they need to awaken, they gain the experience that the previous link had. In the case of the hero's shade, he passes on techniques that are meant for the hero, I think the goddesses want the one they chose to prove they can fulfill their destiny by completing challenges, the hero's shade assists the TP Link, since he has to save two worlds instead of one. (LA is a dream world so it doesn't really count). So he DOES inherit the memories of past incarnations, but only when they awaken.
 
Joined
Oct 2, 2016
The first thought that came to mind was the Hero's Shade, which seems to be a pretty solid refutation.
At second thought though, I realize that the Hero's Shade could be some manifestation of Link's subconscious, or something dormant within him, from the past Links. So this may still be valid. From that perspective, at least.
 

pyjamas5189

Secretly a cat
Joined
Oct 8, 2016
I love this theory!!! I read somehwere that your mind is not capable of creating a random face in a dream but rather creates a face from something you have seen before even if you didn't take notice of it.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Top Bottom