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a son, of many shifts, blandly cunning, a robber, a cattle-driver, a bringer of dreams, a watcher by night, a thief at the gates

Thus the Homeric hymn describes Hermes, the illegitimate son of Zeus and Maia. Maia was a beautiful mountain nymph from the slopes of Kyllene. For Hermes, the messenger of the gods, thought and deed were one and the same.
Hermes's life was characterized by the day of his birth. He was born at dawn. By midmorning, he had emerged from his swaddling, found a tortoise, and invented the lyre from its shell. In the afternoon he stole Apollo's celestial cattle from Pieria. Always cunning, Hermes drove the cattle backwards so that they would not be followed. He also tied branches to his feet to disguise his tracks. From these cows he selected the choicest to sacrifice to the twelve Olympian gods (this is said by some to be the first sacrifice). Upon hearing this, Apollo wondered who the twelfth god was. Hermes confidently answered 'myself.'' When Zeus called Hermes before him to account for the stolen cattle, Hermes denied the accusations. 'I was only born yesterday,'' he explained, 'please believe me as the son of Zeus.'' Thus Hermes's career as the sneakiest, most ambitious, and cleverest of the Olympic gods began.

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