In Greek mythology, Hermes was the god of commerce, thieves, travelers, and athletes. He was also known as the messenger of the gods and had a reputation for being cunning and mischievous.
However, what many people might not know is that Hermes was also responsible for guiding the souls of the dead to the underworld. So, what did killing Hermes do?
According to legend, killing Hermes would have disastrous consequences for mortals and immortals alike. For one thing, it would disrupt the balance between the living and the dead.
As mentioned earlier, Hermes was responsible for guiding souls to their final resting place in the underworld. Without him, these souls would be left wandering aimlessly in the mortal world or trapped between worlds.
Furthermore, killing Hermes would mean cutting off communication between humans and gods. As mentioned earlier, Hermes was also known as the messenger of the gods.
He was responsible for conveying messages from one god to another and from gods to mortals. Without him, humans would be cut off from divine guidance and intervention.
But perhaps most importantly, killing Hermes would mean disrupting commerce and trade. As mentioned earlier, Hermes was also the god of commerce and thieves.
He oversaw trade agreements between cities and helped merchants conduct business smoothly. Without him, trade routes could become dangerous or non-existent.
In addition to these practical considerations, there were also more symbolic implications to killing Hermes. In Greek mythology, he represented a kind of liminality – he straddled both mortal and immortal worlds as well as lightness and darkness (due to his roles as a trickster god and guide of souls). Killing him would therefore represent a kind of destruction of boundaries – a breaking down of order.
Overall then, it’s safe to say that killing Hermes would not have been a good idea! While he may have been mischievous at times (and even stole cattle from Apollo when he was just a baby), his role in maintaining balance and communication between worlds was too important to ignore.