Sacral vs Splenic Authority: How to Tell the Difference

Ever had a client look at you with a puzzled expression and ask, “But how do I know if it’s my gut or my intuition?”

Understanding Sacral vs Splenic Authority in Human Design can be tricky at first, especially since both speak non-verbally through the body. And yet, helping clients tune into the right Authority is one of the most transformational things you can do as a Human Design-informed coach.

In this post, we’re breaking down the key differences between these two Inner Authorities, how they each show up in real life, and what to keep in mind when your client has access to both Sacral and Splenic Centers. Let’s dive in!

A Quick Refresher: What Is Authority in Human Design?

In Human Design, your Authority is how you’re meant to make aligned decisions. Not from your mind, emotions, or logic, but from your body’s built-in inner wisdom.

Today, we’re focusing on two types of Authority:

• Sacral Authority – available only to Generators and Manifesting Generators
• Splenic Authority – available only to Projectors and Manifestors

(Some Generator and Mani-Gen clients may have both the Sacral and Spleen defined in their chart, but we’ll get to that in a minute.)

Sacral Authority: The Gut Response

The Sacral Center is all about life force energy, vitality, and what lights you up. When a client has Sacral Authority, their truth lives in their gut, which only speaks in yes/no answers.

Yep, the Sacral can only give a “yes” or a “no” in response to something that’s happening around them in the moment. It doesn’t do well with open-ended reflection like, “What should I do with my life?” Instead, it thrives when you give it something clear and concrete to respond to.

How the Sacral Speaks:

• A sound: “uh huh” (yes) or “uh uh” (no)
• A movement: leaning in, lighting up, smiling vs. contracting, pulling back, going blank
• A feeling: alive, energized, juicy vs. flat, bored, heavy

The key here is response. The Sacral won’t speak unless it has something in the external environment to react to. That’s why yes/no questions are essential when coaching a client with Sacral Authority.

Coaching Tips for Sacral Clients:

• Practice using yes/no prompts during sessions (“Do you want to explore this option?”)
• Pay attention to their body language when they’re talking through a decision.
• Encourage experimentation in low-stakes choices—meals, outfits, weekend plans, etc.
• Help them notice the difference between a “should” (from the mind) vs. a “yes” (from the gut).

Splenic Authority: The Whisper of Intuition

The Spleen is tied to instinct, survival, and wellbeing. Splenic Authority speaks in quick, fleeting hits of knowing, before the mind has time to interfere.

Unlike the Sacral, the Spleen’s guidance can be more open-ended. It might come through as a subtle internal voice, a physical sensation, a shiver, or a quiet but firm “this isn’t right.”

How the Spleen Speaks:

• A sense of “just knowing” or “this feels right/wrong”
• A whisper of intuition or a quiet inner voice
• Physical cues like goosebumps, warmth, or tension
• A flash of insight—here one second, gone the next

The biggest challenge? Splenic nudges are often so subtle they get missed, especially by clients who’ve been overriding their body’s signals for years.

Coaching Tips for Splenic Clients:

• Ask about first impressions, before they “thought about it too much”.
• Help them recall times they knew something instinctively, and what that felt like.
• Normalize the quietness of Splenic wisdom (and that it may not repeat itself).
• Explore body-based clues: tingles, aversions, feelings of safety or unease, etc.

What If Your Client Has Both the Sacral and Spleen Defined?

This is relatively common in Generator and MG charts: the client has Sacral Authority, but also a defined Spleen Center.

In this case, your client still follows the Sacral as their decision-making Authority, but they may also feel their Splenic intuition chiming in. In a nutshell, the Spleen can add context or confirmation, but the Sacral always gets the final say.

Here’s how that might look:

• Sacral: “No.”
• Spleen: “No… because something’s off about that person.”

Or…

• Sacral: “Yes!”
• Spleen: “Yes, this feels safe and aligned.”

It’s very rare that the Spleen will contradict the Sacral. If it feels like there’s inner conflict, it’s more likely that the mind is stepping in, not the body.

Pro tip: Encourage clients to follow the gut response first, then notice any intuitive guidance that show ups.

Common Points of Confusion

If your client is struggling to differentiate between Sacral vs Splenic Authority, or to identify their Authority in action, here are a few things that might be going on:

• “I didn’t feel anything.” → They may not have had anything to respond to (Sacral), or they may have missed the fleeting nudge (Spleen).
• “It felt right at first, but now I’m second-guessing it.” → Classic Splenic moment. It spoke once, but now the mind is trying to take over.
• “I felt something strong and something subtle.” → If both Centers are defined, this is totally normal. Help your client practice discerning between gut and instinct, with the Sacral leading.

Supporting Your Clients to Trust Their Body’s Wisdom

Learning to trust the body after years (or decades!) of mental decision-making is a process. As a coach, your role is to create space for your clients to experiment and reflect without judgment.

Here’s how you can support them:

• Use somatic coaching to help them notice body’s sensations and cues.
• Celebrate the small wins: “What did your body say, and what happened next?”
• Reflect back what you’re observing: “When you said that, you lit up.”
• Normalize that this is a practice, not a one-and-done skill.

The Power of Inner Authority

Whether your client has Sacral or Splenic Authority, learning to trust the body’s cues can transform how they show up in their life, business, and relationships.

Understanding the difference between Sacral vs. Splenic Authority in Human Design doesn’t just help your clients make better decisions—it helps them reconnect with their deepest and most aligned truth.

And as a coach, that’s a powerful thing to witness!

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