The Adventures of Hermes, God of Thieves Read online

  THE ADVENTURES

  OF HERMES,

  GOD OF THIEVES

  100 Journeys

  through Greek Mythology

  MURIELLE SZAC

  translated by

  MIKA PROVATA-CARLONE

  Contents

  Title Page

  Dedication

  Episode 1

  Episode 2

  Episode 3

  Episode 4

  Episode 5

  Episode 6

  Episode 7

  Episode 8

  Episode 9

  Episode 10

  Episode 11

  Episode 12

  Episode 13

  Episode 14

  Episode 15

  Episode 16

  Episode 17

  Episode 18

  Episode 19

  Episode 20

  Episode 21

  Episode 22

  Episode 23

  Episode 24

  Episode 25

  Episode 26

  Episode 27

  Episode 28

  Episode 29

  Episode 30

  Episode 31

  Episode 32

  Episode 33

  Episode 34

  Episode 35

  Episode 36

  Episode 37

  Episode 38

  Episode 39

  Episode 40

  Episode 41

  Episode 42

  Episode 43

  Episode 44

  Episode 45

  Episode 46

  Episode 47

  Episode 48

  Episode 49

  Episode 50

  Episode 51

  Episode 52

  Episode 53

  Episode 54

  Episode 55

  Episode 56

  Episode 57

  Episode 58

  Episode 59

  Episode 60

  Episode 61

  Episode 62

  Episode 63

  Episode 64

  Episode 65

  Episode 66

  Episode 67

  Episode 68

  Episode 69

  Episode 70

  Episode 71

  Episode 72

  Episode 73

  Episode 74

  Episode 75

  Episode 76

  Episode 77

  Episode 78

  Episode 79

  Episode 80

  Episode 81

  Episode 82

  Episode 83

  Episode 84

  Episode 85

  Episode 86

  Episode 87

  Episode 88

  Episode 89

  Episode 90

  Episode 91

  Episode 92

  Episode 93

  Episode 94

  Episode 95

  Episode 96

  Episode 97

  Episode 98

  Episode 99

  Episode 100

  About the Publisher

  Copyright

  For Félix-Hermes and Esther-Artemis

  For Marie-Agnès

  EPISODE 1

  IN WHICH WE WITNESS THE BIRTH OF HERMES

  The sun was only barely beginning to rise when Hermes came out of his mother’s womb. He stretched himself, yawned and leapt right away to his feet. Then he ran to the entrance of the cave where he had just been born, in order to admire the world. “How beautiful it is!” he murmured.

  It was indeed a very strange birth. Had anyone ever seen a child who had started to walk and talk the instant he was born? This child, however, lived in the land of the gods. This child lived in the beginning of time. In times of mystery when everything was possible. What Hermes discovered on this first morning of his birth was a landscape of rare beauty. The cave where he had just seen the light of day had been dug out at the top of a very high mountain. Fine grassy hills extended below his feet. It was the fourth day of the month of May, and spring was bursting. The child put his hand over his eyes to shield them from the rising sun. He looked for a long time at the small white blotches on the green grass: they were flocks of sheep. He looked for a long time at the small purple blotches on the green grass: they were budding trees. A bird flew in the sky above, tracing great circles. A fine perfumed smell wafted in the air. Hermes suddenly felt the urge to laugh, to burst into laughter: this is how beautiful life seemed to him as it began.

  It was then that a gentle voice called to him from inside the cave. It was Maia, his mother. She had long, silky hair and her gaze was sweet like honey. She smelt good, she smelt of mummy. Hermes went back inside the cave.

  “Where is my father?” he asked.

  Maia gave a strange smile. “He is everywhere and nowhere.”

  Hermes pulled himself sharply away from his mother and stamped his foot on the ground: “But I want to see him, I want to!”

  “Everything in good time,” replied Maia, running her fingers through her child’s curly hair.

  The sun was already high up in the sky when Hermes realized that he was hungry. His mother had fallen asleep and he had followed her in her slumber, nestling tightly close to her. Without a sound, he freed himself from Maia’s arms and decided to go off in search of adventure. He really hoped that he would find on this beautiful earth something which would make him happy. Noiselessly, Hermes clad himself with a sheepskin; he slung a bag over his shoulder and left the cave. Then he scampered down the slopes of the very high mountain without looking back.

  He was whistling gaily and walked at a brisk pace. All of a sudden his foot struck what he took to be a great green stone. The stone rolled some feet away from him. Hermes stopped and picked it up. It wasn’t a stone, but the shell of a tortoise! “It might always come in handy,” he told himself. And he slipped it into his bag.

  A little farther, Hermes saw at the edge of the road some great shrubs with shiny leaves. A pungent scent which tingled his nose emanated from them. They were laurels, the sacred tree of the god Apollo. Hermes did not know this yet. But he liked the smell, so he broke off a laurel branch and slipped it into his bag. “It might come in handy,” he told himself. A little farther still, Hermes came near a pond. A forest of supple stalks swayed around him. He thought that he could hear them murmur: “Good-day, day-good, good-day…” Since he was naturally polite, he returned the greeting to the long reeds. Then he slipped a few of them into his bag, saying to himself: “They may always come in handy.” And he continued on his way. He was not yet very tall, and the forest of reeds concealed him almost completely. This is how he arrived unseen before a herd of cows. These cows were magnificent. They possessed long, curvy horns. Their skin glistened in the sun. With their heads held high, they contemplated the world around them with astonishing elegance. They were so white and so nobly proud that Hermes was certain that he had discovered the most beautiful cows in the world. He felt a great urge to play with them. He dreamt of climbing on their backs for a royal jaunt. He dreamt of sliding underneath their udders to drink their milk. Hmm, how good that warm and frothy milk must be! Hermes, who was getting very hungry, felt his mouth water at the thought. He threw a few glances all around but there was no drover in sight. No one seemed to be keeping watch over this herd. So he made up his mind to serve himself. Yet he had to show cunning. Hermes lay down for a few moments on the mound of cool grass in order to think. The butterflies flitted about him, the sun tickled his neck. What would be the best way to steal these cows without getting caught?

  To be continued…

  EPISODE 2

  IN WHICH HERMES INVENTS FIRE

  Previously: On the very day of his birt
h, Hermes runs away from the cave where he was born, in order to see the world. He discovers the most beautiful cows on earth. And he decides to steal a few…

  Hermes looked minuscule next to the immense cows of the herd he had discovered. He did not hesitate for an instant, however. He edged his way among the beasts and approached the one with the longest horns. He was convinced that this particular cow was the leader of the herd. He stretched one hand gently towards her; the cow turned her head around sharply. Hermes flinched: was she going to give him a good, hard blow with her horns? The animal’s eyes were, however, full of kindness. Hermes raised himself up on the tips of his toes and spoke into her ear for a long time. What was said between the child and the animal has remained secret. Yet the cow nodded her head thrice to tell Hermes that she had understood well. Then she assembled fifty or so of the most beautiful cows of the herd, and walked them backwards out of the field. That’s right—the cows were all of them walking backwards! Hermes was skipping with joy all around them as he guided them along the way. He was very proud of his ruse: in this manner, they were fleeing in one direction, while their hoof prints gave the impression that they were heading in the opposite one. Hermes could not keep from laughing, very pleased with the trick he had just played on the owner of the cows. Hermes could not help but wonder who could possibly possess such beautiful beasts. A thought crossed his mind: what if these cows were the property of a god? There was a good risk that his anger might be terrible…

  As the way was long, Hermes decided to take shelter with his cows in the recess of a valley. A small brook snaked its way through the hollow of the valley. The beasts drank and the child began to skim stones. He was so absorbed by the small pebbles he was throwing against the surface of the water that he did not notice the passage of time. All of a sudden he shivered. “But what is happening? It is dark here and it is cold too,” he murmured, bewildered. Night had fallen soundlessly, and Hermes was discovering it for the first time. Very quickly he began to feel anxious. No matter how wide he opened his eyes, he could see nothing in the darkness. He could just barely make out the outline of his herd, if at all. “But where has the light gone? Will it come back? I cannot stay in the dark, I am too scared, I really am!” He approached the cows in order to feel more reassured. The beasts had lain on the ground. The cow with the longest horns, however, was still standing. She was striking the rocky ground with her feet, staring hard at Hermes as she did so. She struck, and struck, and struck. All of a sudden a faint spark sprang from under her hoof. When he saw it, Hermes leapt to his feet. Right away he began to look for a tender piece of wood. When he had found it, he took out of his bag the branch of laurel that he had picked up along the way. He took it between the palms of his hands and began to rub the branch against the piece of hard wood. The child rubbed, and rubbed, and rubbed. He rubbed so very much that after a while a thin plume of smoke emerged, then a flame leapt up. Immediately he added some dry grass, then some kindling wood, and soon there were great flames dancing. Hermes had just invented fire! The fire drove away the cold, the fire drove away the darkness, the fire drove away fear. Hermes was happy. He had just created on earth the invention which would prove the most useful to men.

  Since that morning, he had still not eaten anything except strawberries and raspberries he had collected along the way, and some bitter-tasting fruit he had picked off an almond tree. His hunger was once again making itself felt. He went to see the cow with the long horns. As though she had understood, the fine beast laid herself down. Hermes lay next to her and drank all of her milk.

  Once he had drunk to his heart’s content, Hermes resumed his way. A friendly moon had risen. Having reached the foot of the same mountain where he had been born that very morning, he hid away the stolen cows. He wished them good night, clambered up to his cave and slipped noiselessly into his crib. His mother Maia had, however, heard him. She had been waiting for him.

  “Where do you come from in the middle of the night?” she said.

  “You scold me as though I were a baby,” protested Hermes, “but I am all grown up now.”

  Maia was about to reply to Hermes that one should not go too fast in life, but she stayed silent. Hermes was tired. As he had been talking, he had taken hold of a rag with one hand and his tortoise shell with the other. The great adventurer looked once more exactly like a baby. So Maia approached the crib and began to hum softly:

  Sweet baby Hermes, you will be the one most loved. Great cuddly Hermes, you shall never fear a thing. Because you are the son of the strongest of the strong, The son of the master of the living gods.

  With his thumb in his mouth, Hermes murmured: “Mummy, who is my father?”

  Maia leant down and whispered: “He is called Zeus, he is the king of the gods.” But Hermes did not hear her. He had already fallen asleep.

  And he would do well to rest, for on the following day a great surprise awaited him…

  To be continued…

  EPISODE 3

  IN WHICH WE WITNESS APOLLO’S ENORMOUS OUTBURST OF ANGER

  Previously: Barely born, Hermes has gone off to discover the world. Along the way, he stole a herd of magnificent cows and he has brought them back with him.

  When the sun rose up again, Hermes felt stronger and taller still. Sitting on the ground by the entrance of the cave, he began to play with his tortoise shell. First of all, he imagined that it was a ship. He blew and blew, harder and harder, until his tortoise ship keeled over. After that, he wore the shell on his head like a hat. It had now become a crown. He imagined himself king of the earth, ruling over all living things. The child played for a long time like this. The more things he invented, the more he amused himself.

  This is how Hermes took out of his pocket some small bits of twine. Seven short pieces of string. He attached the seven strings onto his tortoise shell and tightened them well. Then he pulled at one of the strings. A strange sound was produced, a sound that no one had ever heard on earth. Something which echoed deep in one’s heart. Surprised, the child plucked another string. Another sound was heard. As beautiful, but a little different, more low-pitched perhaps. Hermes was dumbfounded by his discovery. He began to strum the seven strings each in turn, faster and faster, and a melodious music arose from them. It was as though it had the magic power to render one happy. Maia, his mother, had come nearer. She was looking at him, deeply moved. And Hermes felt then the urge to cry out loud the joy which inhabited him. He began to sing in order to accompany the beautiful music. His song flowed like a torrent, untamed and strong.

  He sang of the world’s beauty, which had dazzled him when he had opened his eyes upon life. He sang of his mother’s caresses and of her warm breath down the nape of his neck. He sang of the wind between the branches. He sang of the murmur of the leaves. He sang of the reflection of the sun on the ocean and of the sheen on the plumage of a field bird. He sang of the perfumes of the orange trees and of the tangy taste of lemons. He sang of the beauty of the fire he had invented and of the pallor of the moon which had provided him with light. He sang of bitter almonds and of the limpid dawn. He sang of the blackness of the night and of the absence of a father.

  A tear was running from his mother’s eye. Hermes had just invented the lyre, that musical instrument which soothes the hearts of men, but makes them heavy too. He had just offered music to the world, for ever.

  All of a sudden, a shadow masked the sun. A huge man stood on the threshold of the cave. He carried a silver bow over his shoulder and his tunic left one guessing at the magnificent body underneath. It was impossible not to be awestruck by his beauty. Hermes did not waste time in examining him, however. He hurried to the depths of his crib and bunched himself up into a ball under his blanket, like a baby.

  “You little brat,” cried the man, “you had the nerve to steal my herd of cows!” His wrath was terrible. His voice resonated in the cave.

  But Hermes was not going to let himself be intimidated: “You don’t know what you are talk
ing about! I was born only yesterday! How could I have gone out to look for your horned beasts?”

  The handsome young man seized him by the scruff of his neck and hoisted him out of his bed. “Out of your crib with you, you rascal!” He shook the child up and down, but he did not succeed in appeasing his fury.

  It was then that Maia cried out: “Would you dare to hurt your own brother?”

  Surprised, the young man let go of little Hermes, who fell down on his bottom. Maia hurried to take Hermes in her arms.

  “You are Apollo, isn’t that right? The great Apollo, god of Light and Beauty?” said Maia.

  “Yes,” the young man said, puffing himself up like a peacock, for he was flattered that she had recognized him.

  “Leto is your mother’s name,” Maia continued, “and Zeus is the name of your father, isn’t that right?”

  “Yes,” confirmed Apollo.

  “Then in that case Hermes is your brother, since you have the same father,” smiled Maia.

  Having crept inside the folds of his mother’s tunic, Hermes was trying to keep out of sight. But what he had just learnt filled him with happiness. It meant that he was the son of Zeus, the god of gods! So he was himself a god! Before him, Apollo remained speechless.

  Hermes, who did not know how to appease the wrath of such a powerful older brother, suddenly had an idea: “Let us not argue any more, brother, and let us go and see daddy, so that he can decide which of the two of us is right.” The god of Light let out a sigh. But he had no reason to refuse. He agreed therefore to submit himself to the judgement of Zeus. And this is how Hermes went away to meet his father.

  To be continued…

  EPISODE 4

  IN WHICH HERMES DISCOVERS HIS FATHER’S PALACE

  Previously: Hermes has just discovered that he is the son of Zeus, the god of gods, and that the herd of cows he stole belongs to his brother, the god Apollo. The two brothers have decided to ask Zeus to settle their dispute. Here is Hermes, then, off to meet his father.