Book excerpt: Have you ever heard a voice within, inquisitive, irritating, and contemplating all the time? Well, it has to be Mercury, the karaka of communication and wisdom according to Hindu Astrology. Mercury is the ruler of that fragment of mind that can decide, differentiate, and reason, the faculty that controls the subconscious thoughts and conscious actions and power of discrimination. Its influence is strong. Controlling travel, finance, logic, and education, Mercury can take you places if positioned strong in a horoscope. It can make you a nonsense wreck or sagaciously sensible. Mercury is responsible for how you express yourself to the outer world, how you handle stresses and tackle unfortunate choices in life. Though we are like buildings built brick by brick, it is Mercury that helps present ourselves in the fullest form