Hermes' parents were the supreme god Zeus and the nymph Maya. He came into this world before dawn on Mount Killena in Arcadia. Having slept a couple of hours, he got up and left the cave. On the way, killing turtles and making a huge zither out of its shell, pulling seven strings of twisted sheep’s guts on it. By lunch, he crept into the cloaks of Tsar Admet in Thessaly and brought out a herd from there, which Apollo was instructed to look after. Fearing the chase, he led the animals along winding paths, constantly changing direction. In order not to leave traces in the sand, Hermes wrapped his feet in leaves of laurel and tamarisk. When he passed by a village, he was seen by his grandfather, who worked in the vineyard. Hermes, threatening him with a finger, ordered to be silent. Near Alpheus, he rested a little, lit a fire, hammered a bull and baked himself a piece of fine meat. Then he put out the fire, scattered the ashes, drove the animals further and hid them in the mountains. It was already evening when he returned to Killen. Quietly and easily, like a summer breeze, Hermes slipped into his cave through the key hole, lay in the cradle and fell asleep like a child.
But the next day, Apollo came running and made a terrible noise. Then Maya led him to the cradle where Hermes slept and said: could Apollo suspect her little son, who not only could not steal a herd of cattle but did not even know what a cow was. Hearing this, the boy could not restrain himself and laughed out loud, immediately betraying himself. In order to somehow appease an angry relative, Hermes presented him with a gift of zither from a turtle shell. Apollo was delighted as a child with a new toy, and in gratitude gave Hermes a sprig of hazel, which possessed a magical property in return — only by its presence did it stop any quarrels and forced the enemies to make peace. As soon as he threw it between two snakes attacking each other, they immediately stopped biting and tenderly wrapped themselves around the club, bowing their heads. So there was a caduceus, with whom Hermes had never parted from that moment and who, having survived the ancient times, acquired the appearance of a pateritian, which is used by the bishops of the Greek church.
Fraud made Hermes the god of thieves. As soon as he got to Olympus, strange things began to happen there: Ares began to walk without a sword, Poseidon touched his trident somewhere, on which he was accustomed to lean; Aphrodite during the morning toilet noticed that somewhere her hip belt had disappeared; Hephaestus is not running anywhere to find his nippers. Soon they began to notice that all these were tricks of Hermes. Oh God! There has never been such a god on Olympus! “How do you raise your son?” They asked Maya. What is she? She just shrugged. From Zeus, he intended to steal lightning, which very much burned him and, unable to bear it, Hermes yelled. Upon hearing, Zeus drove him from the divine mountain.
All the gods and goddesses loved Hermes very much, although many were already victims of his pranks, such as Apollo, to whom, at Hermes’s direction, the Athenian hairdresser poured a can of unleavened dough on the sacred head. In this, everyone felt so much youth and immediate attractiveness that Olympus without this prankster would have looked gloomy and empty. Zeus returned him from exile and made him ambassador, messenger representative. The choice was excellent, because the quick-footed god instantly carried out all orders, was clever, guided in every situation and, if necessary, was able to keep secrets. Over time, the other gods began to use his services, and Hermes was forced to make small wings on his feet in order to have time to carry out all the tasks.
Hermes invented gymnastic exercises. He is considered the guardian of Palestra and gymnasium, where youth, playing sports, strengthened the health and strength of the body.
In ancient Greek art, Hermes was portrayed as a middle-aged but not an old man with a sharp beard. But a little later, they began to portray him as a handsome young man, usually naked, with a mantle clumsy thrown over his shoulder. On his head, you can often see a traveling hat with wings; the same wings on his feet; in his hand, he holds a caduceus.