| Total | 4 Silent Realms, 15 Sacred Tears in each |
|---|---|
| Where | Faron Woods, Lanayru Desert, Eldin Volcano and Skyloft |
| Requirement | The matching song on the Goddess’s Harp, then your sword thrust into the Trial Gate |
| Rewards | Water Dragon’s Scale, Clawshots, Fireshield Earrings, Stone of Trials |
| Also found inside | Light Fruit, Dusk Relics (the only collectibles inside a realm) |
Skyward Sword has four Silent Realms, and each one is a stealth trial in which you gather 15 Sacred Tears while Guardians hunt you. You open them with songs from the Goddess’s Harp: Farore’s Courage for Faron Woods, Nayru’s Wisdom for Lanayru Desert, Din’s Power for Eldin Volcano, and the Song of the Hero for Skyloft. The first three each give you a sacred tool you need to reach a Sacred Flame, and the fourth hands over the Stone of Trials, which leads you to Sky Keep. Every realm has the same rules, so read the next section once and then use the realm sections for the gate, the route and the reward.
Table of Contents
Quick reference
| # | Realm | Region and gate | Requirement | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Farore’s Silent Realm | Faron Woods, in front of the Viewing Platform | Farore’s Courage | Water Dragon’s Scale |
| 2 |  Nayru’s Silent Realm | Lanayru Desert, revealed with Nayru’s Wisdom | Nayru’s Wisdom | Clawshots |
| 3 |  Din’s Silent Realm | Eldin Volcano, near the Volcano Ascent Bird Statue | Din’s Power | Fireshield Earrings |
| 4 | Goddess’s Silent Realm | Skyloft, plaza in front of the Light Tower | Song of the Hero (all four parts) | Stone of Trials |
How Silent Realms work
Opening a Trial Gate
After you learn a song at the Isle of Songs, Fi can dowse for the matching Trial Gate. Walk to the spot she finds, where Blessed Butterflies usually flutter, and take out the Goddess’s Harp. Strum along with the pulsing circles of light on the ground. When your timing is right Fi sings with you and petals grow around the mark. Once the ring is complete, thrust the sword down into its center to be pulled into the realm.
The Spirit Vessel and the Guardians
Fi cannot follow you inside. You begin in a protective circle and receive the Spirit Vessel, a plant with a flower on top that records how many tears you hold. The moment you step out of the circle the Guardians wake up and chase you, and a single hit sends you back to the start. Each Sacred Tear you collect freezes them for 90 seconds, and the petals of the vessel fall away roughly every ten seconds to show you how much time is left. Pick up the next tear before they are all gone.
Watchers, Waking Water and Light Fruit
Two things wake the Guardians early. Watchers, ghostly figures carrying lanterns, wake them if their light falls on you, and Waking Water, the odd colored liquid covering parts of the ground, wakes them if you touch it. Some of the water drains away after a while, which opens new paths, so wait when a tear sits behind it. Light Fruit, found lying around, makes beacons appear over the tears near you for 30 seconds. Every tear you collect is marked on your map, so a failed attempt is easier the next time.
Finishing the trial
After the fifteenth tear you must still walk back to the circle where you started. Staying out of lantern light and Waking Water matters on this walk, because once the Guardians are awake after the last tear nothing puts them to sleep again. Reaching the circle ends the trial and you get your reward back in the real world.
Farore’s Silent Realm (Faron Woods)
Gate and song
Learn Farore’s Courage on your first visit to the Isle of Songs, then return to Faron Woods and land at the Viewing Platform Bird Statue. The Trial Gate lies on the ground just in front of the platform. Dowse for it with Fi, play Farore’s Courage along with the light rings, and thrust your sword into the mark.
The 15 Tears of Farore
Begin with the closest tears around the temple steps. The first is at the foot of the viewing altar and the second is at its top, so climb the stairs behind the ledge. Then work through the woods in this order.
- Tears 3 and 4 are in the northwest. Jump from the ledge, follow the big root and climb the vines along the western wall to a high platform.
- Tear 5 sits on an island in the middle of a pond of Waking Water. Cross the log and grab the Dusk Relic there as well.
- Tear 6 is reached by a ledge that leads to a tightrope. Cross the rope to the end.
- Tears 7, 9 and 10 each lie in front of or behind an Earth Guardian along the western edge. Drop onto the lower ledges carefully.
- Tear 8 is on a ledge on the far west side that you can climb from the ground.
- Tears 11 and 12 are on the steep hill. Run up it at full speed.
- Tear 13 is in the south near a gate, and tear 14 is in the far southeast, in a grassy corner that also holds a Dusk Relic.
- Tear 15 is on a ledge in the far east that you climb from the ground.
When you have all 15, push the log near the start off its ledge, jump down and head straight for the glowing circle. Reward: the Water Dragon’s Scale, which lets you dive and swim underwater, and which you need for Lake Floria. The trial also tells you where the first Sacred Flame is.
Nayru’s Silent Realm (Lanayru Desert)
Gate and song
Nayru’s Wisdom is the second song, learned at the Isle of Songs after you finish the Ancient Cistern and its flame. The gate stands in the Lanayru Desert and is revealed with Nayru’s Wisdom; dowse for it and look for the glowing mark beside a cluster of Blessed Butterflies. Play Nayru’s Wisdom and thrust your sword in.
The 15 Tears of Nayru
This realm is full of Watchers and has quicksand that slows you but does not end the trial. Waking Water here rises and falls, so wait for it to recede before you commit. The tears fall into these groups.
- Several tears sit on and around the stepped entrance structure of the Mining Facility: on the stairs, on stacks of crates at different levels, on its platform path, and at the top after you climb two sets of vines.
- One tear is on top of a Guardian’s cage. Push the mine cart against the cage wall and dash up it.
- One tear is hidden in a tree. Roll into the trunk to knock it out, and use the Stamina Fruit in front of the tree first.
- Two tears are above the Waking Water pond that rises and falls. Wait until it empties, then push the platform over it and climb.
- A few tears lie on platforms along slopes in the south and west, including a platform bridge with two Watchers on patrol and a spot west of the gate where you must dash to reach it.
- The last tear is in the north-east corner of the lower level, next to a wall with two Watchers and a sleeping Guardian. Approach from the east and move in between their patrols.
Head back to the circle once the last tear is yours. Reward: the Clawshots, which let you latch onto climbing targets and reach new parts of the desert.
Din’s Silent Realm (Eldin Volcano)
Gate and song
Din’s Power is learned at the Isle of Songs after the Sandship. Land at the Volcano Ascent Bird Statue in Eldin Volcano and dowse. Follow the pulse across the canyon and through the caves to the gate. Play Din’s Power with the light rings and thrust the sword into the mark.
The 15 Tears of Din
This is the largest realm and has the most Guardians. The tears lie in these groups.
- The first tears are close to the start: one at the base of the long sand slope, one up the hill beside a Moblin camp, and one next to a Guardian at the bottom of the hill. Keep to the right wall when you climb the hill, where Watchers patrol.
- More tears lie through the tunnel to the left and past the whirlwind, near the Dusk Relics, inside the cavern, and on the central platform at the end of the giant slide. Jump into the slide, hold A to keep your footing and steer to the air vents.
- A group sits on the high ledges: one at the bottom of the vines beside the cavern, one in front of a rock blockade after the first bone bridge, and one past the second bone bridge across a series of lava platforms.
- Two tears are on the upper ledges. Swing on the rope to reach the one in mid-air.
- The last tears are in the west beyond the Guardians: one on a lower ledge, one at an intersection watched by a Guardian, and one at the end of a tightrope behind a tunnel.
Retrace your path over the bone bridges, through the cavern and back to the gate. Reward: the Fireshield Earrings, which let you withstand extreme heat without losing hearts and open the way to Volcano Summit. They do not protect you in lava.
Goddess’s Silent Realm (Skyloft)
Gate and song
This final realm needs the Song of the Hero, which you complete once Levias teaches you the last part. Fly to Skyloft and go to the plaza in front of the Light Tower. Dowse, play the song along with the rings on the ground and thrust the sword into the mark.
The 15 Sacred Tears
It is cramped and the Watchers are hard to avoid, so move between their lantern sweeps. The tears are placed over a map of Skyloft.
- The first tears are straight ahead of the start, on the bridge, and on top of the Light Tower in front of a Guardian.
- One more is on a ledge with four Watchers standing in a circle.
- Several are in and around the graveyard: behind the back row of tombstones, at the diving pier, and across the lake on the floating rocks.
- Another lies on a wooden bridge across the lake, on a single plank.
- Others are inside the fenced paths with a crate, down the Knight Academy steps toward the Bazaar next to a sleeping Earth Guardian, and on the ledges beside the main path.
After the last tear, return along the same route. You get the Stone of Trials. Take it to the one-eyed bird statue in the northeast of Skyloft, near the Waterfall Cave, and place the stone in its empty socket. The statue fires and breaks open the island holding the Statue of the Goddess, which reveals the way into Sky Keep (it only works in daylight, because the statue turns away at night). Use the Clawshots to climb up to Sky Keep.
