Tanya Miller’s reading room is a colorful clash of religious icons.

Smiling Buddhas compete for room with portraits of Jesus, the Virgin Mary and various Catholic saints.

For the 65-year-old Auburn resident and psychic, there is no contradiction in the symbols of differing faiths.

“It’s all one god,” Miller said. “We may be Christian, we may be Orthodox, we may be Muslim or Buddhist, but we’re praying to one God.”

For the past six years, Miller has operated as the Auburn Psychic, out of her house and business at 930 Auburn Way S.

For a small fee – ranging from $35 for a simple palm or Tarot card reading, to $100 for combination readings, including crystal ball, psychic, palm and Tarot – Miller shares her gift with her clients, advising them on matters of the heart, body and soul.

According to Miller, it’s a gift inherited from her family, and God, which manifested when she was 9 years old.

“I was born with it. It’s a gift from God,” she said. “My family was readers. My mother and father and my grandparents, who were all Portuguese. But they never taught me it. You either have it or you don’t. When I was 9 years old, I would start saying things and seeing things.”

Miller added that she is the seventh generation of psychics in her family, a number that carries special power in the world of mediums and mystics.

Although the method in which she reads for people varies, she said the common thread in all of her sessions is her belief that her power is good and comes from God.

“When I do the pyschic or the crystal ball, I see pictures,” she said. “But when I do the palms, I read the lines. I tell them all if they don’t believe in God, I won’t read for them. And I can tell, I can see it, I know right away. But I’ll try and bring them back to God. That’s what the Christians don’t understand. I tell people to believe in themselves and help them go forward. You don’t have to go to church, you just have to pray. I don’t believe in witchcraft. I teach people to heal themselves.”

Often, she said she sees danger or sickness when reading for her clients.

“If I see sickness, I tell them to go to the doctor,” Miller said. “If I see danger around them, I tell them to be careful. If I see their boyfriend is being bad to them, I tell them to be careful. If I see that they will have a car accident, I will tell them what color car to watch out for. I’ll tell them which kind of doctor to see. If I see heart trouble, I tell them to go see a heart tech. If I see cancer, I tell them to go get a complete physical. If they catch it early enough, they can stop it.”

But there are limits to what Miller tells people.

“I don’t tell people they are going die, because that stays in their mind,” she said. “And I don’t tell them which guy to pick because that sticks in their mind.”

Although most of the reaction to her business is positive, Miller said she occasionally has to bear the ire of religious groups.

“Most people love it,” she said. “But a lot of Christians don’t believe in it. They think I’m evil.”

She added that her house and business is often picketed by Christian groups.

“They come about every six months and protest and saying I’m the devil, I’m evil and I’m this and I’m that. But as long as they don’t come on my property and stop the clients from coming in.”

In addition to her own powers, Miller said the ability to read also has passed down to her offspring.

One of her daughters runs the Pyschic Gallery in Kent, and the other is planning on opening a shop in Federal Way.

Even her granddaughter appears to have the gift, Miller said.

“When my granddaughter was 4, I couldn’t take her to Safeway,” she said. “She would look at people and tell them, ‘Oh, I see your husband is cheating on you.’ People wouldn’t even look at her. Now she’s 15 and she reads also.”

Although Miller loves what she does, she says there are times when it’s necessary to turn off her power.

“I can turn it off, because otherwise I could go crazy,” she said. “I talk like you, I act like you, but I have a gift from God. I don’t compare myself to God, but it’s a gift and I respect it. I love what I do.”