Spirit

Spirits in The Legend of Zelda possess unique powers and have an astral form different from physical matter. While their true form is technically invisible, they can reveal themselves and communicate by living within or taking on material forms.

It is not uncommon for a spirit's appearance to change depending on who they choose to appear to and when. Many spirits visible to people take the forms of animals like turtles or whales. While many act as guides, spirits have at times been known to forge bonds of friendship with Hylians and others like them.

Rare spirits like the Ocean King watch over entire worlds. Commanded by the goddesses, these and other spirits serve as a connection between people and their creators, and even come to be worshiped as protective deities.

In Hyrule, symbolic marks or names are commonly related to Din, Nayru, and Farore.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
The Deku Tree in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time nurtured the forest and the Kokiri. Jabu-Jabu, an enormous whale-like guardian deity, was enshrined in the home of the Zora as the source of their water. Both were spirits beloved as guardian deities. Residing within the Fire Temple in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Volvagia was a wicked dragon defeated by Link. In essence, it was the spirit of Death Mountain.

The Deku Tree sprout is born from the roots of the withered Deku Tree in the adult era of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. One of its roles is to tell Link about his past.

The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker
In The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, the Deku Tree, spirit of the forest, was connected to the fire spirit Valoo and the water spirit Jabun. These great spirits of nature were a part of the daily lives of the people. They awaited Link, and guarded the pearls of Farore, Din and Nayru.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Sent by the goddesses, the spirits of light sealed away the magical power of a group targeting the Triforce and banished them to the Twilight Realm. Their magical power was sealed in a Fused Shadow, split into four, and guarded in separate locations.

Just like the dragons, the names of these spirits were the same as the lands they protected. Ordona, Faron, Eldin, and Lanayru. Although they lived in spirit fountains, these spirits did not normally show themselves to people. They appeared to Link as animals: a goat, monkeys, a bird, and a snake.

In The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, after fulfilling their roles and disappearing, the spirits' springs become fairy springs, continuing to grant life energy to anyone who might happen upon them.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
In The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, many of the major characters are spirits. Fi, the spirit of the Goddess Sword, conveys the words of Hylia to Link and was created by Hylia to serve as a guide. She appears in a metallic form, awakening as needed and returning to sleep once her duty is complete.

Levias, the great spirit of the sky, sings the Song of the Hero together with the three dragons.

In the same time, three spirit dragons watched over the surface world: the Water Dragon, Faron, guardian of forests and sources of water, the Fire Dragon, Eldin, overseer of volcanic lands, and the Thunder Dragon, Lanayru, who had domain over the deserts. In addition to being entrusted with the land by the goddess Hylia, alongside the sky spirit Levias, their role was to pass on the four parts of the Song of the Hero to Link. Each possessed the power of the land they were in, such as the ability to flood entire forests and set off volcanoes. The Thunder Dragon controlled the ancient robots of the era by way of Timeshift Stones hidden beneath Lanayru Desert.