The first game in the Legend of Zelda series was released in 1986. The Dao Dejing was released a considerable time before that. On the surface, these two things seem completely different, but delving deeper into the matter reveals that many concepts and ideas presented in the Dao Dejing can be found in the Legend of Zelda series. In this paper I wish to highlight the elements of the Dao that are present in the way the games are played, the mechanics of the videogames, and the lifestyles of societies in the series.

“A Way that can be followed is not a constant Way. A name that can be named is not a constant name.”[1]

These are the first two lines of the Dao Dejing. These words describe the nature of the Dao, translated here as Way, which is the fundamental force in the universe and what every human, animal, and thing should strive to follow. As the passage explains, one’s Dao is not set in stone, nor can it be described or followed in one specific way. The Dao is ever evolving and changing, and differs from person to person, from thing to thing. Daoists value adaptability over most other qualities, and one’s Way is not meant to be forced into a hole, pigeonholed into a specific path or procedure.

The Dao is impossible to describe with human terms and concepts. If it could be described, it could be classified or quantified, and therefore would not be the true Dao. The true Dao is pliant and natural, ever-changing and evolving. We must also change and evolve naturally in order to follow our Way.

            Chapter 25 of the Dao Dejing states the following: ““People model themselves on the earth. The earth models itself on Heaven. Heaven models itself on the Dao. The Dao models itself on what is natural.”[2]. Interpreted, this passage states that while we may all model ourselves on the Dao, even the Dao has its own model to follow. In the original Chinese, “what is natural” is written with the character Ziran. Ziran literally translates to “self-so”, or “that which is so of itself”. Said another way, Ziran is one’s true natural action or state, or one’s instinctive way. Ziran is present in the natural patterns of the world – for example, the four seasons. Spring brings birth to the world. Summer brings cultivation. Autumn is the season of harvest. Winter is a time of hibernation and death. These seasons influence the patterns of life. If the seasons did not follow their natural patterns, the world would not function. Everything is just so, and it is this way unconsciously, naturally. A follower of the Dao should also follow their Ziran.

            In Chapter 55 of the Dao Dejing we learn many qualities of the ideal follower of the Dao, not least of which is that “those who are steeped in Virtue are like newborn children”[3]. When one is newborn, everything is fresh and never-before-seen. A newborn stares at the world with eyes not yet tainted by societal values and norms. A newborn child does not worry about status or clothes or reputation, and thinks only in terms of the absolutes of “good” and “bad”. If they perceive something as harmful, they scream. If they perceive a situation as pleasant, they laugh. These immediate, instinctive reactions are the kind the ideal follower of the Dao should strive to cultivate.

            A newborn child is fascinated by the smallest details of nature. They often spend long moments observing with wide eyes the goings-on of the world. A leaf can hold their attention for ages. Today’s men and women do not stop to look at nature, focusing only on their current goal to get from point A to point B. The ideal follower of the Dao should take their time to look at the miracles of nature and explore everything, appreciate everything. To follow the Dao is to be in tune with one’s surroundings and to treat everything as though it is one’s first time seeing or experiencing it.

            A key component of the ideal Daoist society and way of life is described in the nineteenth chapter of the Dao Dejing: “Manifest plainness. Embrace simplicity.”[4]. One of the largest threats to the Dao is curiosity. Curiosity breeds envy, disorder, destruction, and death. By embracing simplicity and teaching the followers of the Dao to be content with what they have, they shall not want. If they have no excessive desires, thievery would be nonexistent. Give the people primitive tools that will keep them too busy to think about performing a non-virtuous action. Just as curiosity breeds contempt, contentment breeds virtue.

            The Daoists’ main problem with humanity is that we have excessive desire. A human does not eat only what is necessary, but rather eats until they are overly full. Mankind selfishly tries to keep up with their colleagues by purchasing the latest and greatest in technological advancements, only to upgrade a month later in a frivolous attempt to keep up. Following the Dao is to recognize how harmful and pointless this exercise can be, and to be content with primitive tools and ways of life.


           Chapter 80 of the Dao Dejing states the following in regards to the vision of an ideal Daoist society:

“Reduce the size of the state;

            Lessen the population. …

            Make sure that the people look upon death as a weighty matter and never move to

                        distant places. …

            Make their food savory,

            Their clothes fine,

Their houses comfortable,

Their lives happy.

Then even though neighboring states are within sight of each other,

Even though neighboring states are within sight of each other…

Their people will grow old and die without ever having visited one another.”[5]


In other words, the ruler of the Daoist utopia should strive to keep his people primitive so that they will not want for knowledge or anything other than what they have in their society. Keep your people primitive and hard-working, and they will be too busy to think about visiting another state and seeing the lives they have. A human cannot covet if they are not exposed to something that will cause them to covet.


  One of the best ways to keep people in your society from straying outside of the boundaries of their civilization is to keep them content with what they receive in your walls. The ruler of the ideal Daoist society should understand this and keep the people content, fed, and well-cared for. If a society has everything it needs to survive and be happy within itself it will have no need to meet other societies or to learn about the outside world. Keeping your people uneducated will keep them from being curious about the wrong things, and this in turn will prevent the slippery slope that comes from curiosity and leads to the downfall of society.


So, what do all these passages have to do with the Legend of Zelda series? The answer is: A lot more than you would think.

First, the fact that there is no true way to follow the Dao is analogous to the fact that there is no one true way to play a Zelda game. Unlike platform-jumping videogames or puzzle video games, which are linear and rigid in rule, Zelda allows the player to take matters into their own hands and dictate the pace of the actions in the game. Much like in life, some people choose to play the videogame in a very goal-oriented way, racing from point A to point B in order to make it to the next stage of the game. Others prefer to take their time, trying to take in as much of the story as possible through interaction with the non-playable characters and examining the intricacies of the scenery and finding all the hidden secrets and areas present in the game world. Still others prefer to test the rules of the game by playing it in a manner the creators may or may not have had in mind when designing the game, be it through a sort of self-enforced rule set or attempts to change the gaming world through hacking or exploiting small glitches. One person’s game of Zelda is different from another’s, and no two people play the game exactly the same way.

If a Zelda game was not programmed immaculately, it would not run. These patterns that the game follows are what hold the game world together, whether they are story triggers or something as simple as a day-and-night cycle. Each piece of Zelda is designed to work with another, creating a whole picture and a whole world that works in the way it was meant to work. Each piece of the puzzle interlocks and interacts with the others. Furthermore, playing Zelda is often an instinctive experience, especially in combat sequences. One does not have time to process a strategy when a large beast is hurtling towards your player character, and so the immediate decision to fight or flee must be made. In this way your experience in playing Zelda causes one to tap into Ziran and act immediately and spontaneously.

Playing a new Zelda game entails stepping into a brand new world which to explore. No two Zelda universes are quite the same, as all provide new locations, new scenery, and new challenges to face. It is as though we are born anew each game, as everything is wondrous and never-before-seen. It can be no coincidence that in almost every Zelda game your player character is a child.


Finally, we have the Kokiri race. The Kokiri are a people present in The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time that live in their secluded forest under the watch of their guardian spirit, The Great Deku Tree. These Kokiri people all have the form of children and live content and happy lives. The Kokiri have everything they need to survive in their forest, eating the food that the Great Deku Tree provides and working with primitive tools to keep their society running smoothly. The Kokiri all have set patterns that they follow each day, and are constantly told that if they leave the forest, they will die. Living under this assumption eliminates the desire to escape and explore other societies, keeping their utopian land peaceful and running smoothly. The Kokiri have primitive tools, simple desires that are filled daily, and cannot leave their civilization without fear of death. These Kokiri people are perfectly happy in their forest and have been for many years. In this way they are the Zelda series’ representation of the ideal Daoist society – primitive, content, and stupid.

In conclusion, the Dao Dejing may have been written many years ago, but the ideas from the book continue to be used in the works of today. The way the games never play the same from person-to-person, the patterns of the videogame and the instinctive way one reacts to each situation the game presents, and even the way a magical race lives in the game’s fictional universe all draw inspiration and ideas from the Dao Dejing.

[1] Philip J. Ivanhoe and Bryan W. Van Norden, Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy, 2nd ed., (Indianapolis, IN: Hackett Publishing Co., 2001), 163.

[2] Ivanhoe and Van Norden, Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy, 175.

[3] Ivanhoe and Van Norden, Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy, 189.

[4] Ivanhoe and Van Norden, Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy, 171.

[5] Ivanhoe and Van Norden, Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy, 202.