How To Deliver Authentic Guidance While Honoring Diverse Spiritual Beliefs
The beauty and challenge of being a spiritualist is the diversity of beliefs that our clients bring to the reading table.
If you were to go to a Catholic priest for life advice, his advice would be framed in the context of Catholicism. In the existence of hell and its eternity. In the sacrament of marriage. In the finality of death (no reincarnation). And that makes sense. If you want advice from the Catholic perspective, you go to a Catholic leader in your community.
When you approach a spiritualist who is not initiated into a religion, both the reader and the querent are in an ambiguous space of belief. Without the borders of dogma, spirituality lends itself to anything and everything. That freedom is a beautiful and terrible thing.
You are lucky if you find a tarot reader whose beliefs align with yours. This is why I encourage people to research the reader before booking with them.
That’s not to say that you should keep yourself in a box and never explore readers with a different perspective from yours, but you know the boundaries between what you are open-minded about and what you find ridiculous. For example, I’m open to the idea of past lives and reincarnation, but the moment someone starts talking about reptilians, I mentally check out.
But I don’t have the luxury of mentally checking out when the person with such a different set of beliefs is my client.
As a paying customer, the querent deserves a reading that is respectful, empathetic, and authentic. And all of that respect applies to their beliefs.
What ensues is a type of method acting. For the length of time that an actor steps into a role, they truly believe that everything the character is experiencing is true. In my readings, I temporarily step into the client’s world and engage with their beliefs.
For example, in a reading, someone asked why their soulmate was disinterested in pursuing them. In the framing of their question, there were two beliefs that the querent brought to the table:
Soulmates exist
The person they were asking about was their soulmate
It was not my job to validate or invalidate the existence of soulmates because that isn’t the point of this reading. What they were really asking is “Why is X disinterested in pursuing me?” The word soulmate is a placeholder for a name. They could’ve easily said, “Why is John Smith, born January 1, 1981, disinterested in pursuing me?”
Whether or not I believe in soulmates doesn’t affect the reading unless the follow-up question is: “Does this mean he’s not my soulmate?” At that point, we need to clarify what the querent defines as a “soulmate” and have a spiritual discussion. Clarifying spiritual beliefs helps the querent get the answers they need, rather than a reading shaped by assumptions or biases on either side.
Here are some ways you can filter through your own biases:
Use neutral language — Avoid affirming or dismissing beliefs that don’t align with your own. Use neutral language to remain objective. This way the client can explain their perspective without the influence of your opinion.
Acknowledge without endorsing — You can acknowledge the client’s beliefs without explicitly endorsing or rejecting them. Doing so will validate their experience without forcing you to go against your personal beliefs. For example: “So how do you think the past life in question is influencing your decisions now?”
Set personal boundaries — If certain beliefs or practices are outside your comfort zone, it’s okay to set boundaries with your clients. You can politely decline certain questions or readings, or refer them to another reader whose views align more with theirs. (This is also why I don’t think any tarot reader competes with the other, because we all work with different systems of beliefs and our clientele are unique because of this.)
Filtering through both your bias and your clients’ successfully takes practice. You need to:
Identify core beliefs
Recognize triggers and strong reactions
Cultivate an open mind
Develop a personal Code of Ethics
You may not know what beliefs you’re carrying with you until they are challenged. There will be times when you are processing conflicting ideals in real-time, with a client sitting in front of you waiting expectantly for you to deliver a nugget of wisdom. No pressure.
Like the Catholic priest, some readers circumvent this conflict altogether by establishing their set of beliefs as an official brand position. They will typically list their ideals on social media or their websites.
For example, one tarot reader may post about twin flames, the power of the divine feminine, and the ability to manifest abundance. This reader is aligned with new-age thought. If you were to go to them for a love reading, the phrase “twin flame” would come up even if you, the client, don’t believe twin flames are real. If you knew this about the reader before booking, then going to them for love advice when you don’t align with their beliefs would make as much sense as a Christian going to a Satanist for spiritual advice. Now everyone is pissed off!
Even if you take this approach, it’s worth exploring your own biases. Good brand positioning will make it so that the majority of your audience aligns with most of your views, but that doesn’t mean you’re insulated against all the beliefs you disagree with.
Have a plan. If you choose the divinity of women as an official brand position, how will you react when a cishet man books a reading? If you don’t believe in soulmates, how will you deal with a client who is vulnerable and upset because the person they believe is their soulmate has rejected them?
Clients deserve a reader who is prepared in advance.
Navigating conflicting beliefs isn’t just about being a good tarot reader — it’s about recognizing the value of diverse perspectives. In any community, whether metaphysical or mundane, differences in beliefs are inevitable. To grow a robust spiritual community, we must build meaningful connections, foster trust, and create spaces where everyone feels seen and respected. That involves learning how to work with people who don’t think exactly like us.
There’s no way around it.
This is especially true for spiritualists who practice in person at metaphysical shops, farmer’s markets, and other events where anyone can walk through the front doors.
Learning to set aside personal biases and meet clients is more than a professional skill — it’s a practice in empathy and open-mindedness. When we embrace the challenge of navigating opposing beliefs, we open the door to deeper conversations and mutual growth. And in doing so, we contribute to a more inclusive, understanding community, one where respect for each other’s differences becomes a foundation for connection, rather than a barrier.
Thank you for making it this far. I have a new download available: What every tarot card means in a money reading. Perfect for tarot readings regarding business, workplace, or personal finances (for entertainment purposes only, obviously).
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