Elegy of Emptiness

The "Elegy of Emptiness" is a Song in Majora's Mask.^[2]

Location and Uses[]

MM3D Elegy of Emptiness Statues — The replicas produced from playing the "Elegy of Emptiness"

Played on the Ocarina of Time, the "Elegy of Emptiness" is taught by Igos du Ikana in the Ancient Castle of Ikana after Link defeats him and his lackeys. According to the fallen king, it produces a "soldier" of himself who has no heart.

The "Elegy of Emptiness" leaves an empty shell of the form Link is in at the time, but it can only make one of each at a time.^[1] It is required to scale up the Stone Tower, and it is also necessary to solve several puzzles inside the Stone Tower Temple.^[2]

A total of four shells can exist at any given time, one for each of the young Hero of Time's forms. They all play a pivotal role, but the Deku Link shell is too light in virtually all cases, while the Goron Link shell is specifically used to press down switches that are bigger than usual. The shells can only be formed if Link is in any of the areas pertaining to Ikana Canyon; if the song is played anywhere else, it will not have any effect.^[2] The shells that Link's Deku Scrub, Goron, and Zora forms leave are that of Deku Butler's Son, Darmani III, and Mikau, respectively.

The statues, when placed correctly, can also block certain projectiles such as Octorok rocks.

Trivia[]

The Fierce Deity Link form, under normal circumstances, does not have a shell based on this song, and if attempted by the player via the Ocarina of Time, the game will crash. However, if the game was forced to make a statue appear after defeating Igos du Ikana as such form, Link's normal version will occur without issue.
Link's regular shell, due to its rather creepy facial expression, has a notorious cult-following among the series' fandom, popularly being called "Ben Drowned".

The cut Link Mask resembles the face of the hero's Hylian shell
The scrapped Link Mask, a unique transforming Mask that was originally going to make the hero change into his adult self from Ocarina of Time in the beta version of the game, is similar in appearance to that of the Link shell.

Nomenclature[]

An Elegy is a mournful, melancholic, or plaintive poem, especially a funeral song or a lament for the dead.

Names in Other Regions
Language		Name	Meaning
	Japanese	ぬけがらのエレジー (Nuke-gara no erejī)	Elegy of Exuvia
	French^CA	Hymne du vide ^(MM3D)	Hymn of emptiness
	French^EU	Hymne du Vide	Hymn of Emptiness
	German	Elegie des leeren Herzens	Elegy of the Empty Heart
	Italian	Elegia di Vuotezza ^(MM) Elegia delle Statue ^(MM3D)	Elegy of Emptiness Elegy of the Statues
	Spanish^EU	Elegía al Vacío	Elegy to Emptiness
	Spanish^LA	Elegía al vacío ^(MM3D)	Elegy to Emptiness

Gallery[]

The Link shell from Majora's Mask
The Link shell from Majora's Mask 3D
The Deku Scrub shell from Majora's Mask
The Deku Scrub shell from Majora's Mask 3D
The Goron shell from Majora's Mask
The Goron shell from Majora's Mask 3D
The Zora shell from Majora's Mask
The Zora shell from Majora's Mask 3D

References

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 "You learned the Elegy of Emptiness! It's a mystical song that allows you to shed a shell shaped in your current image. By playing the song while wearing masks to assume different forms, you'll be able to leave up to four empty shells--one for each form!" — N/A (Majora's Mask 3D)
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1 ^2.2 Encyclopedia, Dark Horse Books, pg. 96