The Legend Of Zelda: What Is The Triforce? (2025)

Ever since the original game back in 1986, The Legend Of Zelda has captured the minds and hearts of players around the world. It is a series steeped in its own mythos, tales told over generations that feel more reminiscent of a growing folktale than a single consistent story.

RELATED: The Legend Of Zelda: The Complete History Of The Master Sword

With every great folktale also comes some item of mythical proportions, and for Zelda, that would be the Triforce. It's one of the most common, recurring icons of the series, yet outside of broad strokes, can be hard to fully grasp what it is exactly in the context of each game.

The Creation Of The Triforce

In earlier games, the Triforce was simply a regular part of the world. It existed and was all-powerful, and so of course everyone wanted to claim it for themselves. In truth, this was how it is depicted in the vast majority of Zelda games until Skyward Sword when many aspects of the greater lore were given more firm exploration.

Depicted in various games of the series are the three Golden Goddesses. They are revered deities of Hyrule, giving Link powers in Ocarina of Time and appearing in more humanoid forms in the Oracle games. In Skyward Sword, though not explicitly shown, are given a deeper background, such as their role in creating Hyrule and the Triforce itself.

In the early ages, when existence was in chaos, the trio of Goddesses, Farore, Din, and Nayru, descended to this realm to create structure, and from this, Hyrule was born. To create an everlasting power that could guide this new land, they created the Triforce, each of its three goddesses being represented in an aspect, and each aspect showcasing a core pillar of order.

The three aspects are Power, Courage, and Wisdom.

As depicted in Skyward Sword this left the world functioning, though without a guiding hand, left it without growth. This is where Hylia is introduced, using the power of the Triforce to create Skyloft, a place of peace for the humans there.

As the tale of Skyward Sword shows, each aspect of the Triforce must be represented to continue the balance of prosperity of Hyrule. In this, we see Link, Ganon, and Zelda each take up the roles for each aspect, Hylia herself no longer corporeally part of the world. This cyclical battle, though indeed causes strife, also gives the means for continued peace.

The Aspect Of Courage

The Aspect of Courage is that which embodies the power of the Goddess Farore. The Aspect of Courage was created to govern the will and tenacity of the creatures of Hyrule. With this, they could think and act for themselves and work in tandem with Wisdom and Power.

The Aspect of Courage is typically personified and possessed by Link. It shows how anyone, no matter their birth or lineage, can become someone of importance by upholding the ideals they believe in. As always, Courage can only exist in opposition to the injustice of Power and must be guided by the cool hand of Wisdom.

The Aspect Of Wisdom

The Aspect of Wisdom is that which embodies the power of the Goddess Nayru. The Aspect of Wisdom controls not just the knowledge of the world, but how it can be used. It is logic and law, the righteous governance of the world. It gives Hyrule the power to provide its own structure, though only with careful guidance alongside Courage and Power.

The Aspect of Wisdom is usually seen within the role family of Hyrule in the possession of Zelda. Here, we see that Wisdom is used from a place of prominence, a guiding force for the people of Hyrule so that they may have a figure to represent them. Yet Wisdom means nothing without the Courage to direct it and the Power that it must oppose.

The Aspect Of Power

The Aspect of Power is that which embodies the power of the Goddess Din. The Aspect of Power is more direct than its fellow Aspects, giving the creatures of Hyrule to strength and ambition necessary to survive and to change the world to fit them. Yet Power without Wisdom is just anger, and without Courage is simple cowardice and evil.

The Aspect of Power, owing to its more brutal nature, is almost always seen in a place of opposition to Wisdom and Courage. Ganondorf is the most common holder of it, using it to enact a plan to control the entirety of the Triforce to create a world for himself. Power is a necessary force in the world to ensure order, yet without the balance of Wisdom and Courage becomes a tool of an unbalanced tyrannical rule.

The Inheritance Of The Triforce

With the original creation of the Triforce to oversee Hyrule in the absence of the Golden Goddesses, Hylia was left in their place to oversee its protection. Due to its covetous nature, Hylia created Skyloft to protect the Triforce and the humans under her guidance. Yet this created strife in the land below seeing as its ruling principles were whisked away.

As such, the goddess Hylia sacrifices her mortal form so that she may reincarnate into a mortal body at a time when the evil upon Hyrule may be properly vanquished. To this end, she is reborn as Zelda and guides her friend Link to reform the Triforce so that the evil Demise may be defeated. Yet even with their success, Demise's final words, that his hatred will manifest time and time again, echoed the true structure of the series - that so long as the Triforce exists, so too will the struggle to claim it.

In subsequent entries of the series, this cycle continues. Hylia is now linked to the Royal family of Hyrule, effectively keeping the Aspect of Wisdom always within a place of prominence. The Aspect of Power always manifests in a being of great hatred and ambition, making the sporadic but cataclysmic appearances of Ganon the perfect vessel.

Finally is the Triforce of Courage. It has no true successor but the one with the fortitude to oppose imbalance. In that regard, Link is not special. He is simply what is necessary, and consequently makes him one of the thematically most important aspects.

While the Aspect of Wisdom is inherited along Hylia's reincarnations within the Royal Family, Power and Courage are more fluid. They arise in a time when they are most represented. There is no guarantee that they will always appear within Ganon or Link, and at times one individual may even come into possession of multiple aspects at once. They always, however, arise when strife is at its highest.

What The Triforce Represents

By intent, the Triforce represents structure, balance, and order. The Golden Goddesses created it to ensure Hyrule's continued existence and to prevent it from falling back into perpetual chaos. Hylia herself was meant to be their representative to utilise its immense power to ensure this reality. Yet a god to represent the beings of Hyrule was not truly fit for purpose.

Ruled from then on by the denizens of Hyrule itself, the Triforce became a symbol. It represented Hyrule itself, and however owned the Triforce, owned Hyrule. This is typically Ganon's own goal - to claim the Triforce and create his own version of Hyrule. The reality is that this is indeed possible. When all three pieces of the Triforce are assembled, they grant a wish to its bearer before scattering off again.

The Triforce is the personification of Hyrule, but also the reason for struggle. Without it, there can be no balance. The struggle for the Triforce is what defines the growth of Hyrule. Without Power, there is nothing to oppose. Without Wisdom, there is no guidance. Without Courage, there is no one of strong enough will to build a better world.

The Triforce is a practical tool, yes, but it is ultimately a symbol that defines Hyrule itself.

NEXT: The Legend Of Zelda Timeline, Explained