The Many Names of Mercury

Gods are vast beings.

Like us, they have many roles, responsibilities and domains of influence.

It's not so different than you.

The "you" that shows up for work is a different aspect of the total "you" than the part acting a parent, or a musician, or a basketball player, or a lawyer, or a lover.

Each role brings forth a slightly different side of yourself.

When you are working with a deity in a magickal or spiritual context, it can be helpful in some situations to focus on a particular aspect of them.

That brings us to epithets.

What are epithets?

Epithets are traditional titles, descriptive phrases, or alternate names given to gods that highlight different aspects of their power, personality, or domain.

In ancient cults and rituals, calling on a god by a specific epithet was believed to invoke a particular power.

Many mystery cults and esoteric traditions used secret epithets to access hidden knowledge or divine favor.

Epithets are like the secret password that get you into the deity's VIP club.

In Hermeticism and alchemy, for example, epithets of Mercury (Hermes Trismegistus) were used to channel wisdom and transformation.

In Magickal practicel, they help you attune to the aspect you want to connect with most aligned with your intentions or goals.

So here are a few of the traditional Epithets of Mercury / Hermes

• Mercury Terminorum — Mercury, god of boundaries (especially in the sense of violating boundaries)

• Interpres Divum — meaning Messenger of Heaven

• Mercury Mercator — Mercury, god of merchants (primarily a Roman icon, where statues depicted Mercury as carrying bulging bags of money)

• Mercury Fortunus — Mercury, god of luck (probably in games of chance)

• The Calamus — an item sacred to Mercury — meaning, a reed, an arrow, a flute, or a pen (as patron of literary men)

• Mercury Atlantiades — grandson of Atlas (his mother’s father)

• Mercury Alipes — wing-footed, swift, fleet, quick

• Mercury Caducifer — bearing the herald’s staff

• Mercury Pacifer — peace-bringing, peaceful, pacific

• Mercury Interpres — broker, middleman, negotiator, mediator

• Mercury Sobrius — an aspect of Mercurius honored in a specific vici of ancient Augustan Rome, connected to an older Punic god

Now let's look at a few names grouped by his various domains

Messenger and Communicator

🔹 Logios – "The Eloquent One" (patron of speech, rhetoric, and persuasion)

🔹 Diaktoros – "The Guide and Messenger" (one who conveys divine messages)

🔹 Angelus – "The Angel" (later used in Christian contexts, meaning divine messenger)

Trickster and Clever One

The meaning here is that Mercury is a divine trickster—a force of chaotic wisdom that breaks boundaries and helps people see beyond illusions.

🔹 Dolios – "The Deceiver" (master of tricks, deception, and outwitting others)

🔹 Empolaios – "Lord of Commerce" (associated with trade, profit, and bargaining)

🔹 Poimandres – "Shepherd of Men" (a title later used in Hermetic philosophy, meaning a guide of wisdom)

Guide of Souls (Psychopompus)

These names reflect Mercury’s role as a mediator between life and death, a guide for the dead, and a helper for those seeking transformation.

🔹 Psychopompus – "Guide of Souls" (leads spirits to the afterlife)

🔹 Chthonios – "Of the Underworld" (Mercury’s connection to the dead)

🔹 Caducifer – "Bearer of the Caduceus" (his sacred staff, which grants safe passage)

God of Alchemy and Esoteric Wisdom

These epithets connect Mercury to alchemy, secret knowledge, and spiritual enlightenment—especially in Hermetic traditions.

🔹 Trismegistus – "Thrice-Great" (the mystical Hermes Trismegistus, linked to alchemy and Hermeticism)

🔹 Stilbon – "The Gleaming One" (related to Mercury’s celestial brilliance as a planet)

🔹 Arcaneus – "Keeper of Secrets" (hidden knowledge, occult wisdom)

Swift Traveler and Boundary Crosser

Mercury is a god of movement, whether through trade, physical travel, or shifting between worlds.

🔹 Agoraios – "Of the Marketplace" (guardian of merchants and thieves)

🔹 Eriounios – "Luck-Bringer" (god of sudden fortune, travel, and change)

🔹 Pylaios – "Keeper of the Gate" (protector of doorways, transitions, and movement)