How to start a training session with a horse…
Every session starts with and actually ends with petting the horse. It is done in long slow strokes always with the hair as the start. It is our way of inviting the goodness of the horse to be present by first bringing our goodness forward.
The time this takes is the time it takes. We are generous because not only can we be generous, but because we wish the horse to be generous with us.
The neck and head are involved but how we do this is not as important as the horse’s eye and reaction. It is important to breath slowly and to stand open and balanced. One feels the sensations and presence without words.
There is much more but for the average horse person, this is enough. There are more techniques which bring the horse’s mind and your mind into a link, but this is a simple thing which everyone can do and so few do.
We do not use food to bribe the horse nor do we expect anything from the horse at this moment. We are kind because we can be and tender because we want to be. This is the greeting of friends and not master-servant dialog.
Confusion, doubt, and fear are the enemies of our relationship. Primoidally free confidence and delight are our friends. There is never a quarrel, for we start from a state of ever loving and generous being and hold out loving kindness for the horse.
This is the gift from which our dressage starts and our gratitude is what presents itself in the end. This is an ancient greeting ritual. It is telling that most people would find this unimportant and seek to “get on with it.” Yet, I have come to believe that this is the most important part of the daily work. We start and end with a reverent mind.
As one become better educated in a dressage of “goodness” there are numerous other ways in which we learn to extend our kindness. Training is a sacred act and not a day at the gym. Our touches heal the horse and heal us. The time we spend with the horse is precious and we should not forget this.
Is it possible for anyone to object to such a practice? Yet, such things are rarely done.
Dressage which if free of such practices has little value even if it wins because a disconnected mind harms itself and others.
Is it possible for anyone to object to such a practice? Yet, such things are rarely done.
Dressage which if free of such practices has little value even if it wins because a disconnected mind harms itself and others.
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