What is Skyward Sword's Ancient Cistern? (Zelda Theory)

before we begin today's theory I want to remind you all of our Zelda minecraft server over the past several months we've added much more to the server in terms of both plugins and zelda bills this includes a new world which has a huge emphasis on exploring recently we've added a cuoco update where the chickens now retaliate if attacked if you two loved the thought of being killed by one feathery boy make sure to check out our server the address is MC ni n TBL kc calm a huge thanks to those who helped to build it the server and plug-in devs but most importantly thanks to my mod Espen as he's been hard at work with the server since its launch with that said I hope you enjoyed today's video [Music] Skyward Sword is infamous for its rep in the zelda community it's both the most controversial and important title within the series explaining the origins of the Master Sword goddess hylia and of course demises curse the events of Skyward Sword are presented as a way to explain the official timeline of games found in Hyrule historia despite its flaws Skyward Sword has some of the best dungeons in the series such as the ancient cistern and Sancho those who have been following this channel for a while now know that the former has been discussed frequently with its connections to malice we've never spent a whole episode uncovering its secrets and with all the odd design choices there is a story to be told here what is the ancient cistern water temples are infamous for their difficulty in puzzle solving the best example coming from Ocarina of Time the water temple was known for its confusing layout and tedious gameplay being forced to repeatedly switch in and out of the Iron Boots skyward swords renditions of a water temple was executed brilliantly making it a dungeon many look forward to completing in my opinion it's because it doesn't try to be unique with its use of water-based puzzles halfway through this temple it takes a 180 and changes from a serene paradise to a dark lifeless cavern the player must traverse between these two contrasting areas in order to complete the temple after a clash with the ancient cisterns guardian corrupted by gear hems dark magic a sacred flame is obtained one look at the dungeon makes it clear that it was designed based off of Buddhist themes in the dead center of the cistern lay a statue of enormous proportions its appearance closely resembles that of Buddha revered as the founder of the Buddhist faith but the connections to this religion go much deeper than you'd imagine from its design choices to the drastic change in setting and how the player navigates through the dungeon our investigation begins with the temples exterior with its entrance resembling that of a fish this pose is also seen in breath of the wild when viewing the giant sculpture above the surahs domain in fact the ancient cistern is filled with these designs whether it be engraved as a pattern or statues protruding from the temples walls and floors the sheer amount of these creatures both inside and out must be of some significance upon closer inspection it's clear that the statues depict the carp species they have small eyes thick lips and a single dorsal fin but the most important detail is without a doubt their small whiskers on each corner of the mouth another fish known for its whiskers is the catfish however there are distinct differences between the two both the number and length of said whiskers the significance of this small detail comes from the ash to Mangala a sacred sweet evade auspicious signs endemic to a number of religions such as Hinduism Jainism and Buddhism the conch endless knot Lotus parasail vase Dharma chakra the victory banner and pair of golden fish which symbolize happiness as they have complete freedom of movement in the water more importantly they are often drawn in the form of carp the fish represents both abundance and fertility and the carp is viewed as sacred thanks to their size elegant beauty and lifespan in Japanese culture the koi carp is a highly respected fish thought to be a symbol of luck prosperity and good fortune the fact that the ancient cistern is a water-based dungeon makes us connection much more apparent the golden fish isn't the only sign of the eight to make an appearance one of the others the lotus flower is seen throughout the dungeon in Buddhism this represents fortune its literal meaning is to rise and bloom above the murk to achieve enlightenment as the flower does grow in muddy water in fact the Buddha compares himself to a lotus and Buddhist scripture stating how the lotus flower raises from the muddy water unstained as he raises from this world free from the defilements skyward swords ancient cistern has the player aim to reach the very top where both the temples Guardian and the sacred flame resides remember this detail as we'll return to it later another detail worth mentioning is the dungeons Item the whip which features a lotus flower on its handle early in development it was adorned with the skull perhaps this item was planned to be retrieved from the lower parts of the ancient cistern but changed partway through development the Japanese name for this dungeon translates to great ancient cavern in English its change to ancient cistern makes sense the definition for cistern is a tank restoring water especially one supplying taps or as part of a flushing toilet this explains the flowing water within the upper portion of the temple but what of the dark murky depths which house enemies the answer comes from its second purpose as fight tells us that purified water is released into the upper area of the facility while the filtered impurities are processed in the lower area the crystal-clear pond in the main chamber is a result of contaminated water filtered to become here once again and sent back to the upper chambers to understand why a structure of this proportion was necessary we must first talk about the region in which it resides the ancient cistern is located within fair on one of the surfaces three provinces the dungeon lies within lake Floria we're told that Ferren is home to a large diversity of flora thanks to its abundance of water the source clearly being lake Floria as the underwater passages lead to the base of the water dragon fair on technically the lake itself does have a source as many waterfalls surround the area most likely coming from the provinces mountains lake Floria acts as a water source not only for firaon but other regions of the surface one of the Magma's within Elden speaks of how the little water they get is fed from a far-off water source that source being none other than lake Floria their waterways extend all the way to this region despite its distance the same may have been applied to lanayru-- given how the sand sea was once a vast ocean in the sense lake Floria is the provider of life for most of the surface world this information makes the purpose of the ancient cistern even more clear a lake which both feeds the regions with its abundant water while housing the water dragon fair on could ruin its ecosystem if polluted or contaminated a plausible answer yet there is more to this puzzle than meets the eye there are two types of water which exist in the fair on the regular kind found in bodies of water and sacred water the latter is exclusive to the two sacred springs of Skyward Sword the sky view and earth Springs both found within the respective temples this water is sought out by link to heal Ferran who was wounded by gear ahem fie States this water has mystical properties that cannot be found in ordinary water and contains a powerful energy absolutely pure water these are the locations which Zelda had visited to pray at the sprains and restore her memories as goddess hylia now in the body of immortal this included purification in the sacred water of the springs of Elden and fair on according to legend the water here purifies the body of any life-form that comes into direct contact with it Springs which hold sacred water said to hold powerful energy we've discussed something along the lines of this in past videos perhaps this is related to force a sacred power said to exist in all living things as one who shares the blood of the goddess much of the sacred power would reside in Zelda the minish cap speaks of a similar power referred to as light force which Vaught he tries to extract from the princess in an attempt to become a god both phantom hourglass and spirit tracks have their own physical forms of life force the Santa ours and force gems and the Japanese name for the light force life force and force gems translate to all the same they're all referred to as simply force the process of purification is repeatedly brought up in Skyward Sword this is important to know for later on but what of the other half of the dungeon while one part of the cistern is calm and peaceful the depths of the temple where all the impurities are processed is the complete opposite home to many monsters including the curse spoke oblem said to reanimate purely through its hatred of this world upon death there is a chance as creature will drop an evil crystal a chunk of pure crystallized monster malice often obtained from monsters who possess the power to curse a similar group of enemies appears in breath of the wild the cursed book hablen Moblin and lizalfos all reanimated after death thanks to the power of malice this coincides with Japanese folklore such as the ura a ghost or spirit powered by emotions such as the desire for revenge love jealousy hatred or sorrow after if malice is powerful enough to reanimate monsters after death it's possible that the power used by the demon lord gear him which corrupted kalokhe dose was malice fie describes this energy as cursed a parallel to enemies which have the power to use curse attacks it's safe to assume that the cursed energy is another term for malice in addition the pools of liquid deep below the ancient cistern will curse link when touched the impurities processed and sent down to this cavern is most likely a form of malice a pure and sacred object such as the Sacred Shield has a power to repel the curse spoke oblongs who cower and fear while also immune to curse attacks one fact you've most likely heard about is the dungeons connections to the spiders thread short story when on a stroll through Paradise Buddha gazed into the crystal clear water and caught a glimpse of hell there he found a cold-hearted criminal named Ken data he only did one good deed in his lifetime he decided not to stomp on a spider moved by this act of compassion Buddha lower two spiders threads so that the man-made climate up to paradise can data began to climate but soon realized that other sinners were climbing up outraged he exclaimed that the thread was his and his alone it was this moment that the thread snapped sending him and the other sinners back to hell kandata condemned himself because of his selfishness when he should have felt compassion believe it or not the ancient cisterns puzzles were made based off of the story there are two worlds within the temple a clear parallel between paradise and hell the water in the upper chambers is crystal clear and filled with lilies both a pool of blood and mountain of spikes are present within the murky depths of the ancient cistern and to escape this poisonous chamber link climbs a spiders thread and is pursued by cursed bobbins let's not forget the inclusion of spiders within the temple's upper portion coincidence probably not just like how link is almost crushed by the statues feet perhaps a parallel to caneta is one good deed of not stopping a spider the ancient cistern is built upon the balance of two worlds one of purity the other of impurity those must purify themselves before ascending some to a Lotus raising from muddy water purification through water similar to what a scene of the sacred Springs is closely connected to the Buddhist faith the offering of water at Buddhist shrine symbolizes the aspiration to cultivate the virtues of calmness clarity and purity with our body speech and mind upon the cleansing of spiritual defilements enlightenment will be realized the upper chambers of the cistern reflect these very virtues a calm clear and pure environment the lotus flower can symbolize one of many things depending on its color most of the flower is engraved on the walls and used as torches are a shade of pink this color is said to be one of the most celebrated flowers that there is it is considered sacred and is associated with the highest realms of Buddhism with the Buddha himself many kings and the highest deity often depicted with this plant but when it comes to Zelda inspiration is taken from not just Buddhism but other forms of religion one in particular Shintoism is worth discussing bear with me as we get slightly off-track Shinto meaning the way of the gods is the indigenous faith of the Japanese people and as old as Japan itself it remains Japan's major religion along with Buddhism Shinto gods are referred to as commie sacred spirits which take the form of things and concepts important to life such as wind rain mountains trees rivers and fertility interestingly enough Wind Waker features two gods of wind zepho sand cyclos it's also said that many comi are believed to have messengers generally depicted as talking animal forms very similar to the light spirits of Twilight Princess which served the golden goddesses they also take the form of animals linear ooh is referenced as a snake incarnation Shinto has no absolute right Imran and nobody is perfect the evil within oneself is said to be caused by evil spirits therefore the purpose of most Shinto rituals is to keep away evil spirits by purification prayers and offerings to the comi those who wish to enter a Shinto shrine must perform a purification ritual a simplified version of a much larger purifying ritual that generally takes place in a river or by a waterfall in which the person cleanses their hands and mouths involving a water basin and a long wooden spoon with the existence of Skyward Sword ancient Springs said to a purified Zelda with its waters there's no denying a connection between the two something similar is seen within breadth of the wild as Zelda prays to the goddess statues within the three springs in hopes of unlocking her powers communication with spirits tied to the ancient gods would without a doubt require a form of purification there's a couple of reasons as to why this ties in with the Buddhist faith one the discussion of Shintoism and its possible connections to the ancient cistern doesn't clash with Buddhism while the dungeon references Buddhist Scripture and symbols it doesn't mean Buddhism as a faith exists in the Zelda universe to both the Shinto and Buddhist faith are known for complementing each other in fact many Buddhists viewed the comi as manifestations of Buddha while this video is focusing on Buddhism in general do know that Shinto plays a part in the molding of Zelda stories and gameplay in terms of purification Skyward Sword adds its own twist on the subject what's important to remember is that those who are impure have the chance to purify themselves Skyward Sword demonstrates this through expressions of gratitude a contrast to malice gratitude is directly mentioned in the dungeon not once but twice the stone tablet at the front of the grandiosity is carved with inscriptions of gratitude the key to the ancient cistern the blessed Idol looks like it's supposed to inspire gratitude life is a test when it comes to the Buddhist faith it's important to be grateful for not only life's blessings but its sufferings one article goes in-depth with the spiritual growth all humans are born in a world where there is suffering this suffering is a vital part of the human experience it makes us stronger and teaches us to resist the temptation of evil when we banish evil thoughts from our mind we are able to break free of the muddy water and become one with the Buddha the mud shows us who we are and teaches us to choose the right path over the easy one Skyward Sword features a demon living in Skyloft named Patrick's his only wish is to become friends with the people of Skyloft however due to his appearance no one wishes to approach him his aura as a monster is the very reason the settlement is swarmed with monsters in the nighttime but he's not malicious in any way once the player retrieves a certain amount of gratitude crystals which are made from overwhelming feelings of gratitude he transforms into a human there are two important parts to take note of here Patrick suffered from his appearance as a demon as it forced him into isolation unlike those from the depths of the sister and hatred never consumed him on the contrary he's overwhelmed with gratitude himself once Linc retrieves all the crystals it isn't the gratitude of others that purified him but the gratitude he himself had felt his suffering was turned into feelings of gratitude not of malice as we've already established links goal of ascending the temple to reach its top symbolizes the rising and blooming above the murk to achieve enlightenment one of the eight auspicious symbols of Buddhism is a Dharma chakra a wheel which symbolizes Buddha and is teaching it symbolizes a cyclical nature of life in this world also referred to as wheel of samsara samsara meaning the beginningless cycle of repeated birth mundane existence and dying again rebirth is looked upon as a form of suffering for Buddhism the goal is to break this wheel so that rebirth does not happen samsara ends when one attains nirvana blowing out of the desires and the gaining of true insight into impermanence and non-self reality also known as enlightenment sound familiar Skyward Sword ancient cistern may include this symbol as similar wheels are used to move the giant statue in the main chamber a similar design is also present within the game's earth temple the large spinning wheels found in the top and bottom of the cistern may be connected to prayer wheels most commonly used in Tibetan Buddhism the central chamber holds one more secret and it's related to links ascension through the temple engraved into the roof of the chamber is what appears to be a lotus flower with dozens of petals something similar is etched into the ceiling of the room before the boss chamber with even more petals this closely resembles the crown chakra one of the seven energy centers associated with particular parts of the body the chakra system is often associated with both Hinduism and Buddhism the most common system uses seven variants and while the top is the crown chakra its separation from the body makes it different from the others it's generally not regarded as a chakra another name for it is sahasrara symbolized by a lotus flower with a thousand petals fun fact that's the Japanese name a sahasrara in a Link to the Past this system is used by those who wish to gain balance in themselves no chakra is more important than the other as the goal is to spin and draw in this energy to keep the spiritual mental emotional and physical health in the body of balance the tv-show Avatar The Last Airbender simplifies this topic so it's easier to grasp these pores are like our chakras so sugars are pools of spiraling energy in our bodies exactly however life is messy and things tend to fall in the creek and then what happens the creek can't flow yes but if we open the pods between the boots the goal is to open all of your chakras so the energy within your body flows each chakra is responsible for a certain part of the body and is represented by a lotus flower of different colors and petals many are unable to open the final chakra as you must release all of your earthly attachments to let go of what you loved it's not a part of the body because it's considered to be of the highest spiritual center pure consciousness the puzzles within the ancient cistern consists of moving the statue up and down completion of the temple happens only when the head ascends above the ceiling where the crown lay the boss chamber itself is worth discussing as the fight takes place in what appears to be a sealed lotus flower the overall design of kalokhe dose seems to take inspiration from the deity Asura described as having three heads with three faces each and either four to six arms on both the chest and crown are carvings of lion heads an article on the symbolism of animals elaborates further in Buddhism lions are symbolic of the Bodhisattvas the sons of Buddha or Buddha's Lions Bodhisattvas are beings who have attained a high level of spiritual development they have generated bodhichitta and have made the vow to renounce the happiness of the highest enlightenment and remain in this world working until all sentient beings are free from suffering in Buddhist iconography we find the Lions in the role of Dharma protectors supporting the throne of the Buddha's and Bodhisattvas they are also found at the entrance of the monasteries and shrines in the northern areas of Nepal influenced by Tibetan Buddhism and art the Lions have become snow lions it's important to remember that kalokhe dose isn't an evil being in fact the Japanese name for it is demon tainted sacred instrument Phi tells us this ancient automaton defends the ancient cistern and eliminates intruders in the sense kalokhe dose is guardian of the temple he protects the ancient cistern similar to the Lions which protect the thrones of the Buddhist one who is appointed the protector of the this turn would certainly have attained a high level of spiritual development similar to the Bodhisattvas but one of the mysteries yet to be solved is a strained laugh of kalokhe dose before he's destroyed there are a couple of possibilities though nothing conclusive a part of the spiders thread story recounts the moment Kenda realizes he might escape hell he has overcome by joy and laughs giddily and the lion imagery on the Guardians body could be of a snow lion in which the following is stated the snow lion is a Tolka or personification of the primordial playfulness of Aneta joy bliss comparable to the Western unicorn perhaps kalokhe dose is the personification of a small child I reached out to another person who researched the Buddhist connections of the ancient cistern in which they suggested that laughing while dying could be the happiness achieved from being free of the malice true happiness is a goal of Buddhism perhaps the laugh is also an expression of gratitude towards link I leave you with one final discovery the design of the pillars within the temple are worth breaking down given the design of the cistern the middle represents a yin and yang design two opposing and complementing principles the top of the pillar resembling clouds could be a heaven or paradise but what of the bottom is it a representation of Hell or Naraka the image could be of jail bars and we do see a couple in the depths of the temple the ancient cistern continues to be one of Zelda's best dungeons in both gameplay and from a lore perspective I didn't realize just how much symbolism to Buddhism there was until I started my research the information shared in this video was a combination of what I had found and the topics briefly discussed in past theories but I want to give a huge shout out to meto 1 to 8 on reddit for helping me with parts of this video there were things I missed that he brought up in his several posts on the topic of the ancient cistern and I highly recommend reading it there's a lot more to this temple which wasn't addressed in this video so a link to his posts will be down below very special thanks to my friend Adam for making that short animation you guys should totally check out his channel papercraft feeder if you want to see more there are a couple other videos I want to recommend if you want to hear more about the concept of lifeforce and Zelda or the connections of malice and gratitude crystals check out my episodes where I cover the villain belem from Phantom Hourglass and the second part of my malice theory these topics were briefly addressed in this video so if you want to know more about them you know where to go this video took much more time and effort to make than the usual theories so if you enjoyed this episode I would be forever grateful if you considered subscribing links to Twitter and discord are down below and I will see you guys next time [Music] [Laughter]

Channel: NintendoBlackCrisis

Views: 387,540

Keywords: zelda, breath of the wild, botw, botw2, breath of the wild 2, sequel, trailer, analysis, theory, legend of zelda, skyward sword, ancient cistern, malice, koloktos, cursed bokoblin, nintendoblackcrisis, nbc, theme, music, faron, ghirahim, release date, nintendo switch, mystery, secret, e3, link, fi, zonai, ss, zelda skyward sword, water temple, buddhism, buddha, buddhist, the legend of zelda ocarina of time

Id: m9JZlSc1XCk

Length: 24min 23sec (1463 seconds)

Published: Wed Apr 22 2020