The Legend of Zelda and all associated concepts are the property of Nintendo.
Prelude: Salve.
(Welcome.)
To see the world in a grain of sand
And heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,
And eternity in an hour.
-- William Blake. "Auguries of Innocence."
The creation of the world is the subject of much study in the land of Hyrule.
The stories and legends surrounding it, while very firm on some points, are remarkably ambiguous on others. For instance, while it is quite clear that Din devised the seasons, it is unclear how and why she did so. Did the Goddess of Power do it to help mark the time Nayru first measured? As a way of testing the strength of Farore's living creations? Did the Goddess of Courage have to alter her trees so they would change with the seasons, or did the two sisters plan together to create the cycle of winter and summer?
Many other questions about the Holy Triumvirate's creation have been posed by the priestesses, priests, and theologians of Hyrule. A great deal of effort, for example, has been put into discovering the most important of Nayru's Laws. Some philosophers say that the first Law must dictate that a balance be kept between the forces of the universe, while others say that it must concern magic, the unifying force between living creatures and unliving earth. Some say that the prime Law must declare the supremacy of the Triumvirate over the rest of the universe; still others hold that it must be a declaration that all things, great and small, are subject to Nayru's Law.
An enormous amount of thought and effort has gone into formulating these possible answers, none of which are correct.
There are, actually, many wise or erudite beings in Hyrule who have an idea of the truth of this matter. Some have an inkling of the correct answer, and others are more confident; but in all of the kingdom, there is only one being who is absolutely certain his answer is the right one.
In the eastern part of Hyrule, inside the small safe haven of the Kokiri Forest, which in turn lies within the vast amalgamation of corporeal and incorporeal life known to the world as the Lost Woods, stands the Great Deku Tree. A guardian spirit of almost unmatchable wisdom and magic, the Great Deku Tree was seeded by Farore herself before the labours of the Goddesses were completed, and watched firsthand as the Triumvirate pieced creation together. To the scholars of Hyrule, he is more of a legend then the Goddesses themselves; those who believe he exists would pay almost any price for the chance to be shown the way through the shadows and enchantments of the Lost Woods and to be brought to the Eldest Tree's meadow, to ask him about the Goddess of Wisdom and her Law.
The Deku Tree was there when Nayru's Laws were still in the writing; if asked, he could say, confidently and accurately, that the greatest and most important of Nayru's rules is the rule that says all the other rules are really only guidelines.
Wisely, the Great Deku Tree has decided not to spread this knowledge around.
"Life is a flame that is always burning itself out, but it catches fire again each time a child is born."
-- George Bernard Shaw
"In youth we learn; in age we understand."
-- Marie von Eber-Eschenbach
Notes and Trivia:
-- Does anyone know another way to divide sections besides those dull, repetitive "hr" things?
-- Next time: the creation of the Forest; Mikkuo and the First Kokiri; the promises to the First and Eldest