In Hesiod’s Works and Days, Hermes gave Pandora a deceptive mind. Zeus ordered the gods to equip Pandora, and Hermes contributed qualities associated with cunning, falsehood, and persuasive speech.
The account distributes Pandora’s attributes among several deities. Hephaestus fashions her, Athena teaches her crafts, Aphrodite gives her charm, and Hermes provides a deceptive nature. This sequence presents Pandora as a constructed divine figure rather than as an ordinary human born through natural ancestry.
Hermes is especially suitable for this role because Greek mythology associates him with communication, cleverness, boundary-crossing, and trickery. His involvement does not mean that Hermes alone causes the catastrophe. Pandora’s creation, her delivery to Epimetheus, and the opening of the jar all belong to the wider plan attributed to Zeus.
Modern summaries sometimes assign every trait to Zeus or describe the gods’ contributions vaguely. Hesiod’s poem is more specific: the divine qualities are divided among named gods, with Hermes linked to deceptive speech and character.