Water Temple

Link, this is a beautiful lake full of pure, clear water. At the lake bottom there is a Water Temple used to worship the water spirits. The Zoras are guardians of the temple.

The Water Temple (水の神殿, Mizu no Shinden) is the third major dungeon of the adult-Link portion of the Ocarina of Time, and is where the Zoras pay homage to the water spirits.

Story
The Water Temple was an underground/underwater temple built by the Zoras to pay homage to the water spirits as well as all the remaining gods and deities worshiped by the Zora race. It was located at the bottom of Lake Hylia at the base of the largest island in the lake's center. The temple was one of six temples built within the land of Hyrule for one of the Seven Sages, the Sage of Water. The Sage of Water was granted all powers associated with the element of water and was tasked with protecting the Water Temple.

Seven years after Ganondorf unleashed the Great Cataclysm at the height of the Imprisoning War, the King of Evil froze Zora's Domain with the might of the Triforce of Power and placed a monster named Morpha within the Water Temple to prevent the Sage of Water from awakening and assisting the Hero of Time in an attempt to prevent the Prophecy of the Hero of Time from coming to pass. Morpha slowly but surely began to drain Lake Hylia of its fresh water, leaving it an almost barren pit over a seven year period. Sheik rescued Princess Ruto, the Princess of the Zoras, from under the enchanted ice sheet Ganondorf had cast over Zora's Domain, and she immediately headed to the Water Temple to destroy Morpha, save Lake Hylia, and restore Zora's Domain and her people to their original states. The Hero of Time came in search of the Sage of Water and upon learning of Ruto's plan, followed her into the Water Temple. Within, he met Ruto before she was abducted by Morpha and learned of the monster's existence. He fought his way through the confusing labyrinth of waterways that made up the temple and found his way to Morpha's chamber, where he slew the beast by destroying its nucleus. He was then teleported to the Chamber of Sages within the Sacred Realm, where he met the Sage of Water, Ruto. Reluctantly putting their engagement on hold, Ruto gave Link the Water Medallion and sent him on to assist the next Sage while she remained and guarded the Water Temple.

It is likely that the Water Temple came to be known as the Lakebed Temple before the events of Twilight Princess. The original entrance to the Water Temple likely eventually came to be at the surface of the water, requiring a new entrance at the bottom of the lake to enter the temple. The original entrance remained but was transformed into Lanayru's Shrine with its entry to the temple now blocked off. There are numerous similarities between the Ocarina of Time Lake Hylia, and the Twilight Princess Lake Hylia, the most notable being the presence of the Water Temple islet from Ocarina of Time, which still features the dead tree atop, and stands opposite the shore from Ocarina of Time; the Lakeside Laboratory has become part of Fyer and Falbi's Watertop Land of Fantastication, and a bridge has been built from the area which, in Ocarina of Time, had featured numerous rock pillars and an entrance to Zora's Domain. This bridge, the Great Bridge of Hylia, links to the Water Temple islet, and over into the Faron province.

Dungeon
It is located beneath the waters of Lake Hylia at the base of the lake's largest island. The Water Temple is effectively a maze of chambers on four floors, some only accessible when the water of the temple is at a certain level. Part of the challenge of this temple is being able to raise and lower the water level effectively. The temple's main treasure is the Longshot. The Water Temple's Sage is Princess Ruto and its warp song the Serenade of Water. The Water Temple has been called the hardest temple in the game due to its water puzzles which require the constant need of having to switch the Iron Boots in the menu and the water level of the whole dungeon, although the difficulty has been greatly decreased in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Master Quest. The difficulty of the dungeon results from a somewhat haphazard arrangement of puzzle groups. There is seemingly no relationship between one puzzle/room series and the next, and the player is forced to use guesswork and hope that he or she didn't miss a small key. The miniboss of the dungeon is the notorious Dark Link, a black shadow version of Link that mirrors his moves. The dungeon has a prominent theme of serpents or serpentine objects. Most pillars and ornaments have some sort of a serpentine design on them. The dungeons basement even has a section consisting of a long tunnel shaped like a curled serpent, with rapids and whirlpools swirling throughout.

Some players have experienced glitch in the Water Temple. If a Small Key is used on the wrong door at the incorrect time, the Temple (and thus the game) becomes unbeatable. One of the most used and wise ways to beat the Temple is cause-and-effect: players save before actually entering the Temple, do a certain order of actions and if they get stuck then they merely reset the game and try again.

Sage
Princess Ruto

Items

 * Longshot
 * Heart Container
 * Water Medallion

Enemies

 * Blade Trap
 * Blue Tektite
 * Gold Skulltula
 * Keese
 * Like Like
 * Shell Blade
 * Spike
 * Stinger

Mini-boss

 * Dark Link

Boss

 * Morpha

Trivia

 * Like it says above, the Water Temple has been classified as the hardest temple in the game, probably due to the fact that you have to raise and lower the water level,go to rooms only to find you have to get through most of the temple to get to what you'll need later on in the temple, and the only weapons you can use underwater is the Hookshot and the Longshot.
 * In Twilight Princess, the water temple is Lanayru's Spring
 * The Water Temple can actually be played after the player acquires the bow and arrow from the Forest Temple, thus allowing the player to skip the Fire Temple for later.
 * Due to a glitch in the game design, it is possible to enter and defeat the Water Temple very early in the game as young Link. It is more difficult to achieve due to young Link's lack of a Hookshot and Iron Boots, but it can be completed using various glitches.