Son of Hermes and the god of shepherds and flocks, Pan was half-man and half-goat. When he was born, his mother was so frightened at the sight of her child that she ran away, taking the nurse with her. But Hermes was proud of his son and introduced him to the Olympians.

It is easy to see why Pan's mother was horrified. In art, Pan is shown with two horns on his forehead and with the ears, tail, legs, and hooves of a goat. The young god was raised by nymphs and became a mountain dweller. His physical characteristics made it easy for him to climb rocks and move quickly over the rough terrain.

As a woodland god, Pan was worshiped primarily in rural areas. He was believed to be responsible for the fertility of animals. When a herd's animals did not reproduce, Pan was blamed for their barrenness, and his statues were defaced. (Most gods would erupt with anger over such treatment, but it didn't bother Pan. He grew much angrier if his sleep was interrupted.)

As a fertility god — one whose lower half took the form of an animal renowned for its lust — Pan was famous for his sexual ability and was frequently shown with an erect phallus. He often chased nymphs, trying to catch and violate them. One such nymph was Syrinx.

A follower of Artemis, Syrinx did not want to have sex with Pan and tried to outrun him, but Pan was very fast. He chased her to a river's edge. Trapped, unable to cross the river, Syrinx begged the river nymphs to save her. They granted her wish, transforming her into a bed of reeds, just as Pan reached the scene.

Disappointed, Pan breathed a huge sigh. His breath blew through the hollow reeds and made a delightful, musical sound. Pan cut several different lengths of the reeds and tied them together to make a set of pipes. This instrument became known as panpipes, or syrinxes.