Rauru


 * This article is about the character from Ocarina of Time. For the town in The Adventure of Link that goes by the same name, see Rauru (Town).

Rauru is an ancient Hylian and the Sage of Light in Ocarina of Time. Ages before the events of Ocarina of Time, he constructed the Temple of Time during the Era of Chaos. At that point, the Temple of Light situated at the center of the Sacred Realm, became the resting place of the Triforce. Rauru isolated himself within the Temple of Light to continue the protection of the sacred relic.

During the events of Ocarina of Time, Rauru is not seen outside of the Sacred Realm except as Kaepora Gaebora, his owl form, which he uses to aid young Link during his quest.

Ocarina of Time
Long ago, during an age of chaos many years after the events of Skyward Sword and shortly before the Kingdom of Hyrule was established, Rauru built the Temple of Time over the remains of the Sealed Temple that was located deep within Faron Woods. He remained within the Temple of Light that was situated in the Sacred Realm, only leaving it in the form of the wise owl known as Kaepora Gaebora. Among the populace, it was widely rumored that Kaepora Gaebora was the reincarnation of an ancient sage, although they do not seem to know that he is Rauru in particular.

After Link defeats Queen Gohma and leaves the Kokiri Forest, Kaepora Gaebora awaits him at the edge of the woods, giving him encouragement on the adventure the Great Deku Tree has tasked him with and directing him to Hyrule Castle, then leaving with a promise that they'd meet again.

True to his word, Kaepora Gaebora often appears to tell Link about a new area whenever the young hero comes upon it, and he picks Link up and carries him twice when Link could not progress on his own. Once Link reaches the Spirit Temple, after navigating between the eras of his childhood and adulthood, Kaepora Gaebora compliments him on his growth and bids farewell, after giving one final piece of advice on how to defeat the witches, Twinrova.

When Link drew the Master Sword from the Pedestal of Time, Ganondorf entered the Sacred Realm and obtained the Triforce of Power from the Temple of Light. The Sacred Realm, transformed into the Dark World, with the exception of the Chamber of the Sages, where Rauru's powers were strong enough to keep it intact. Rauru kept Link, in the safety of this chamber, so that the boy could grow old enough to truly assume the role of the hero. Rauru speaks with Link for the first time after a period of seven years, informing him of what has happened and what he is supposed to do as the hero. After instructing him to awaken the other Sages, Rauru gives him the Light Medallion. Afterwards, he only reappears as Kaepora Gaebora once, to watch from afar while Sheik teaches Link the Requiem of Spirit.

Rauru contacts Link again when he has freed the other five Sages. He tells Link to meet "someone" waiting at the Temple of Time before facing Ganondorf. This person turns out to be none other than the seventh Sage, Princess Zelda. Unfortunately, by revealing herself to Link, Ganondorf also was finally able to find her. Rauru then instructs Link to save Zelda and informs him that he and the other Sages would aid him by providing entrance to Ganon's Castle. When Link defeats Ganon, Rauru leads the other Sages when they use their powers to seal away Ganondorf.

The Wind Waker
Rauru is memorialized within one of the stained glass windows in Hyrule Castle's basement, where the Master Sword is enshrined.

Trivia

 * Rauru, aside from the seventh sage, is the only Hylian Sage in Ocarina of Time. This causes speculation that each sage is chosen from a race to represent an element. Considering that Rauru is the Sage of Light, this may most likely be a way to connect the Hylian race to the element of light.
 * Rauru, like several other characters from Ocarina of Time, inspired a town featured in The Adventure of Link to be named after him (that is the in-universe explanation anyway, in fact it was his name that was reused by the Zelda team from a town in the previous game).
 * King Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule is similar to Rauru both in appearance and in the fact that he is a wise man who aids Link in his quest.
 * The character Auru from Twilight Princess seems to be a reference to Rauru.
 * In Skyward Sword, Zelda's father Gaepora bears a great deal of resemblance to Rauru and has a similar name and personality to his owl form Kaepora Geabora.