Spiritual Stone





In Hyrule during the era of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, in order to open the Door of Time which sealed away the Master Sword in the Temple of Time, one needed the three Spiritual Stones.

The three stones were known as:
 * The Kokiri's Emerald, the "Spiritual Stone of Forest", which was held by the Great Deku Tree;
 * The Goron's Ruby, the "Spiritual Stone of Fire", a treasure held by Darunia;
 * The Zora's Sapphire, the "Spiritual Stone of Water", which was held by Princess Ruto.

During his quest to unlock the Sacred Realm and steal the Triforce, Ganondorf, the evil king of thieves was refused the Spiritual Stones by each of their respective guardians. In response, he cursed them all with various blights using dark magic. In order to obtain the stones to prevent the Triforce from falling into Ganondorf's hands, Link was required to free the guardians from Ganondorf's malevolence.

Kokiri's Emerald
The Spiritual Stone of Forest, Kokiri's Emerald, was first of the three Spiritual Stones Link had to acquire in order to open the Door of Time during his adventures in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. By relieving the Great Deku Tree of the evil parasite which had infested it, Link proved his courage, leading to the Great Deku Tree entrusting Link with this stone and the fate of Hyrule.

Goron's Ruby
The Spiritual Stone of Fire/Goron's Ruby was the second of the three Spiritual Stones that Link had to collect in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. It was a dearly held treasure of the Goron race. When Link managed to defeat the evil creatures inside Dodongo's Cavern which was the Goron's source of food, he was given this stone by Darunia, the "big brother" or patriarch of the Gorons.

Zora's Sapphire
The Zora's Sapphire is the Spiritual Stone of Water which was passed down to Link by Princess Ruto after he had saved her from the insides of the giant whale deity Lord Jabu Jabu. Ruto fell in love with Link and gave him this stone as a symbol of their "engagement". An heirloom of Zora royalty, the stone was given to Ruto by her mother who said to entrust it to the man she would one day marry. However, when Ruto became a sage seven years later she was forced to break this promise due to her new responsibilities as a sage.

Trivia

 * The Zora's Sapphire is also known as the Zora's Engagement Ring. This is why Ruto gives Link the Zora's Sapphire: as an engagement ring.
 * The emblems of the Kokiri's Emerald, Goron's Ruby, and Zora's Sapphire appear as recurring designs within the forest, Goron, and Zora dungeons of Twilight Princess. Similar symbols appear within the desert, Oocca, and Twili dungeons, indicating that these are the tribes' symbols.

Theory
Some have noted the similarities shared by the Pendants of Virtue, the Goddess Pearls and the Spiritual Stones. This could indicate a direct link between these artifacts, or equally it could simply be an example of the designers' desire to create a feeling of familiarity or a sense of a "shared legend" within the series.