|
Invisible Horsemanship: Practice
in the Field of Consciousness
Leigh Shambo, MSW, Epona Advanced Instructor
Since I teach courses in “Invisible
Horsemanship”, I am often asked what, exactly, it is. The most simple
and elegant explanation would be “…the practice of consciousness
functioning as cause, in our real relationships with horses”. If this
sounds esoteric, or a hopelessly difficult idea to work with, the horses
make it really simple (although sometimes our past conditioning makes it
difficult to “get”). It is a very practical way to directly experience
and influence the ways in which mental and emotional energy really do
play a huge role in creating our reality.
....Certain
attributes of consciousness reliably create harmony in our relationships
with horses. By attributes of consciousness, I mean traits like
curiosity, persistence, honesty with self, or creativity. This month we
can look at four cases of a common horsemanship “problem”—balking. I
will give you four examples of how riders using tools of consciousness,
or invisible horsemanship, influenced the balking situation with a horse
in an almost magical way.
For those unfamiliar with balking (although
most who have been in the horse world any length of time will have seen
this behavior!) it means… “to stop short and refuse to go on.” Does this
mean that the horse questions our leadership? Is something wrong
(danger, or lameness)? Author Linda Kohanov characterizes “… misbehavior
as a form of communication.” And so, we must operate first from a place
of intuitive attunement that seeks to understand what the horse is
saying and respond appropriately.
The consciousness of curiosity
Sometimes Invisible Horsemanship looks like the
gut level discernment that the horse is saying something important. My
friend and colleague Cat Ahman was out with her assistant trainer riding
some young horses on their first foray in the mountains. It was still
early in the day, and the hills just beginning to grow steeper, when the
young mare Cat was riding began to balk. Cat dismissed the urge to
discipline her, instead remaining curious and interested in the
behavior. When given her head, the mare turned back toward her young
gelding companion and touched his sweating haunches with her nose. It
quickly became evident that this horse was in the early stages of the
metabolic disorder commonly known as tying up. When we are called to
listen to the intelligence of our equine partners, life changes. We are
suddenly aware that intelligence whispers through all of life, if we are
just practiced in hearing it.
The consciousness of assertion
On the other hand, sometimes Invisible
Horsemanship involves standing by our own intentions without backing
down. A rider named Anita had a horse who started balking at the gate
that led to the trail out from the barn. She tried to figure out why,
and when the horse turned away, she would ride in circles for awhile and
then try again, without success. In a conversation with me, Anita
changed her mind. The next time she went to ride Frosty out the gate,
she did not allow Frosty to turn after balking at the gate. Instead, she
practiced skills she had learned in Invisible Horsemanship, staying
focused on her goal in stillness, staying present and allowing Frosty
time and stillness to feel her way. It required that Anita stay in a
place of non-judgement, staying in a mental place of stillness,
curiosity and non-judgment while not backing away from her intention. To
her amazement, within one minute, Frosty decided willingly to walk
through the gate toward the trail, never looking back, and not acting
the least bit anxious.
The self-honesty to look in the mirror
Another rider named Cathy, had several horses
consecutively, all of whom balked. The horses loved her, enjoyed her
kindness, and were sympathetic and in agreement with her desire not
to feel like she was making them work! In her work at HEAL, Cathy
realized that deep inside, she was conditioned to believe that she was
not worth listening to, and she had energetically almost turned herself
into a mouse. She also realized she had a fear that she was merely an
inconvenience to others. In releasing this belief, Cathy was amazed to
discover that her current horse and others that she rode flowed easily
forward, playful and full of impulsion. It seemed to her that they had
previously been mirroring her own listless, I’m No Fun energy.
Childlike creative communication
This story was told to me by a PNH coach who
also loved to see how varied horses are in their communication style. A
young man was trying to persuade his horse to jump over a barrel in a
ground exercise on a 20 foot line. He was well versed in all of the
games and seemed to be sending the right signals. When he finally ceased
all communication and buried his head in his hands, the horse jumped the
barrel, unaided! Another creative solution was found by my assistant
horse handler Val Hampson. My best energetic coaching had failed to help
Val convince wise Ameer to join up and walk beside her. Now he was
marching enthusiastically by her side. “What did you do?” I called out.
“Oh, I simply offered him a deal, 2 minutes of this and its lunch-time!”
Oh yeah, I forgot that Ameer speaks English, too!
There are reliable ways of learning to work
within this field of consciousness to pick up the right attitude. Once
you find the right angle, the right question… your horse will be right
there showing you how to proceed to understanding him or her. In each
vignette presented here the essential harmony, or common ground, was
first found and recognized in the field of consciousness, as a rider
responding out of the invisible feel or empathy of horsemanship.
You find the right way by feeling
The field of consciousness holds an infinite
number of possible choices and outcomes or directions for a particular
situation. Often, students are surprised to see their mentors deviate
from their own method! We can learn to tune in and discern the many ways
that horsemanship feels. At HEAL, we practice ways of working
within the field of consciousness first, then bringing our actions into
alignment with conscious choices, practicing the dance of reflection and
action until an effortless, spontaneously right action and acceptance is
felt in each moment. And each moment seems to fit with its adjoining
others. This is the magic of horsemanship at its finest, which we all
love to experience.
|
