Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Equine Guided Healing



Copyright 2010

Animal lovers have long known the healing power of animals. Their ability to love unconditionally and be fully present in the moment disables human defenses, melts and opens the heart, erasing the cares of modern life. They are the most phenomenal healers as they do not color their work with ego or agenda and have the ability to bring us back to a very pure and child-like state of being.

Shortcomings of the Spoken Word
Putting silent, sacred connections into words is difficult as language and the human intellect is not yet calibrated to do so effectively. The second stumbling block is words are symbols for things and experiences. Each individual will hear what is said and skew the information according to their life experience. A well intended conversation can take a wrong turn from there. An attempt will be made here to shore up the discrepancies.

The Inception of Equine Guided Healing
Longtime pioneer in this emerging field of healing with horses is Barbara Rector of Adventures in Awareness. Her simple yet profound teachings that incorporate the way of the horse have led many people to reap the benefits working with large herd animals brings. The horse serves as a guide to the ancient rhythm of the earth, that man once had access to, as nomads roamed with large, matriarchal herds. Because of the horse, that wisdom and reverence for life contained within that era now has a chance to seep to new generations.

Restoring Energetic Courtesy
Her concept of “con su permisso” (with your permission) gives horse and human a chance to open the relationship with respect for the talents and limits of both parties. A gift at times, found lacking in the equestrian and modern world, as the will of the ego dictates more often than courtesy.

 In doing healing work, it is customary to obtain the souls permission before proceeding. The same applies to the horse when working in this context. It brings people back to a place of non-verbal, energetic consideration.

As an example, upon entering the horses’ stall space, one should extend a silent intent to connect with the animal. If the animal greets one, the invitation is open to enter the stall. Elementary, but often overlooked, much as one would seek permission to enter the home of another human being.

 The same applies when entering the animal’s personal space. We all have had those folks that for whatever reasons “get in our face” to exchange conversation. One takes a step back, they step in closer. The basic respect of boundaries and personal space, that invisible bubble around you (your energy field) has been defiled and the person doing so has no clue. The very foundation that makes this work so profound is that it will re-establish pure, subtle energetic connections that will make life appear to move magically; and all it boils down to is respecting and acknowledging the state of an individuals’ energy field.  In today’s fast paced society, this common courtesy and silent knowing, is often lost in the haste of modern life.

Restoring Security in an Uncertain World
When one secures an open-hearted, sincere connection with the horse, the foundation is laid for what Barbara calls the “safety agreement”. The safety agreement condenses down to either side voicing concern if ones’ safety or security is sensed to be compromised. While it sounds easy enough, many people have difficultly articulating their basic needs, let alone what one may perceive as threatening. The fear of ridicule and/or the reprisal speaking such a truth may bring causes many to forgo the gift of integrity, and thus build their image from a false platform that will buckle under the tests of life.


Honoring this simple sentiment will allow the human to hear the prayer in the horse’s heart. When the chatter in the humans’ intellect begins to settle, the human begins to sense the prayer in their own heart that has been silenced in the cacophony of modern information. The prayer is to be honored with all our glories and shortcomings and loved enough in a sacred space to grow beyond those limits, just as the horse wants. As the human begins to incorporate these steps into their lives, the base and the crown of the energy field begin to function as they were designed to; rooting (Mother Earth) and enlightening (Father Sky); secure and inspire the individual at the same time.

The gift of learning to “be” evolves as the voice of ego and agenda dissolves. A new acceptance of oneself and other beings helps to pave the way to deeper understanding, compassion and inspiration as individuals navigate the ebb and flow of life. This grants a new sense of strength and empowerment in most individuals, along with the wisdom to use that force with prudence. All this thanks to the power and grace of the horse.

Equine Guided Healing - Putting Ego and Agenda to Rest
 A great disconnect occurred when humans placed themselves above the workings of the universe, putting value in our intellect and contriving, rather than working with the benevolence of the planet and her creatures. By doing so, humans lost step in the celestial dance of the universe, leaving a legacy of a poisoned environment for future generations to inherit. No other being on this planet does this to its offspring.

Humans are part of the cycles of creation and destruction that this universe is predicated upon. When a human learns to make peace with this duality and not think of themselves above this fact, we will almost immediately diffuse the potency of our destructive nature. The energy field becomes rooted in the goodness of Mother Earth, inspired by the omniscience of Father Sky and the heart (the gateway between heaven and earth in Traditional Chinese Medicine) is opened to interpret the will of self, others and the planet with inspirationand wisdom that results in the good for all.

Creating a Sacred Space
When working with large herd animals like horses, it is imperative to provide humans a tool to keep themselves safe as they learn the energetic subtleties of timing and movement that makes skilled horsemanship look like a dance.

This tool has been described as the “safety agreement” by Barbara Rector of Adventures in Awareness. This tool provides a protected environment (sacred space) where both parties feel free to articulate when their safety feels compromised. In Equine Guided Healing, the courtesy is extended to the horse via non-verbal communication and subtle energetic shifts.

The Gifts of an Ego in Balance
The gift your ego brings should be to show you who you are, at any given moment, on any given day. Taking in all the factors that comprise the whole, the environment, the beings involved, the atmosphere; this helps to formulate an inspired course of action that results in the good of all and thereby keeps the ego in check. When this happens, you know who you are (strengths and limitations) and your place in the greater scheme of things. The ego will not have to scream as loud to be acknowledged or attempt to cover some perceived deficiency. As such, as deep sense of well being and being taken care of emanates.

This will change the rhythm of the heartbeats in humans. As the heart opens with the greater goodness of love (love matured, not the enabling, co-dependant version most confuse for love), the horse senses this deep change in the heartbeat and the energy field; thus the horse finds the option of abandoning his wariness of the human predator, putting his trust in humankind.

This is the motivation of having the horse work with us and not for us. A fine distinction often lost in the fervor of ego, agenda and faulty pre-programming humans can suffer from. When the human reaches this point of sincerity, the horse eagerly joins in. A host of exercises can be executed by horse and human without harm, as each is rooted, inspired and loved in the moment beyond seeming expectations and limitations each has been yoked with through the ages.

A simple exercise that opens great awareness for most people is leading the horse from the right side. It is common to lead a horse from the horse’s left side, as most people are right handed. In doing so, the horse is throwing more weight on the right haunch; it can lead to lameness issues in the long run. It is the beginning of an imbalance started by “comfortable” handling. The right side is association with the masculine, the left side with the feminine.

This right-sided dominance causes most people to innately chose working the horse to the left in a ring (working off our right side), stressing certain tissues in the horse more than others. If the person is asked to work off their left-hand side, most find they are so atrophied; they will struggle to find the strength and balance to move the energy of the horse efficiently and with grace in the weak direction. Our natural tendency is to work off our dominant side. Thereby we transfer our imbalance to the horse. Most people will need to be told to move the horse in the opposite direction, to keep the animal balanced, but more importantly to begin balancing the human.

Most humans find that working from their left side softens not only their actions, but even how their footsteps connect with the ground. It opens their ability to sense the energy of the horse intuitively without having to “keep on eye on the horse”.  This is important as all predators have their eyes facing forward on their faces. Focusing hard with both eyes locks our neck and shoulders, a very “predator” move.

The horse is an animal that is preyed upon (eyes set far apart on their heads, allowing almost a 360 degree field of vision). A hard focused stare sends to the horse a very ancient and disturbing feeling.

Using peripheral vision softens our predatory stance. Learning to “see” with our entire body and energy field connects with the horse much as herd members do. We are learning to work within the ancient hardwiring of the horse when we accomplish this basic shift. The horse willingly dances with us when this simple alteration is incorporated into human behavior.

A New Way to “Be”
In this open and mindful state, the human diffuses the ticking bomb of predatory thought. The opportunity arises to acknowledge the chaos and mess that life can be, and with the help of benevolent equines, humans can choose a less forceful path. This gives integrity a voice and more importantly a chance to be heard and acted upon. It helps humans to control and contrive less, be open to the wisdom of the planet and her other beings and provides a window for ancient prudence to grace new generations.


Pure Communion with all that Surrounds You
 At the close of a session of Equine Guided Healing, it is most common for people to feel at complete ease and peace. Some mention they don’t even know what the feeling is just that it is a very quiet, reflective state. Sad that modern life, for all its conveniences, rips the solid foundation of peace from under our feet.

When this disconnect from the planet and Her life occurs, man is left without the tool of the most ancient language the planet has ever known. The human has just been dis-empowered from the very planet that nurtures all life contained within the blue aura of Her atmosphere.

 Must the Show Go On
This deep peace changes the rhythm of the heartbeat and the energy field. Animals’ sense when this “true” and peaceful state of being is reached. In teaching others to work with animals from an energetic point of view many people with deep seated respect for other life forms act from this place naturally and the miracles just flow. Others whom have been yoked by chains of expectation will try too hard to put on a “show”. If the domestic creature has found its voice and knows how to use it, they will generally reject this coercion and ill use of will.

A show has a preprogrammed agenda and does not lend itself to the ebb and flow of life, creating consequence and crisis. Man has created many versions of such “shows” as they are predictable, teachable and help to feed the ego. This can also be the reason some “trained” wild creatures go “bad” at times. They need to get back to that ebb and flow, creation and destruction programmed into all life in this universe, humans included. The sooner we make peace with this fact, the better we are able to minimize the damage the inflated ego brings. Working from a place of false, assumed superiority will cause inevitable consequence as the “whole” of a situation is not taken into consideration.

Keeping Ancient Wisdom
As moments unfold in working with creatures there are times when one literally has a chance to stretch physical, mental, emotional and spiritual limits. Some people will cloud this process with the voice and intention of their egos and color what can be or kill a new level of wisdom all together by not allowing integrity to lead the way. Often they want someone or something to be the keeper of their conscious all together. Here is where the human errs greatly as that voice should come from deep within you and not someone or something else. Here is where people will get bucked off, bitten, attacked or some other wake up call. This is where one remembers the ancient wisdom of other races that man does not own the earth and needs to be mindful of his intentions with it and the consequences there of. Intention can be woefully tainted by ego, leading with integrity gives voice to ancient, silent wisdom.


The Power of Love to Neutralize a Multitude of Ills
Anything ones loves to do, that absorbs you, will lead you to a "zero" state. This is where the logical mind is quiet and the only apparent thought is "inspiration" (this happens when the energy field is fully open and functioning). Some find this state with meditation, art, flying, animals; there are many paths to the same end.

It is an absolute state of being present and in the moment, very hard for most people to get to, but it can be addictive once people learn to access the state. There is great peace and silent strength in this state. It is the gift of honoring the past in your life and that of your ancestors, without being yoked or colored by it, accepting yourself and others, not yoking them or yourself with expectations or assumptions. This is the place, where the ego has learned to be at rest. It is loving what is and being at peace with it.

Once the ego, respect and integrity marry and merge with Devine inspiration limits we have been yoked with since childhood shatter and the world is our own without the need to contrive, coerce and manipulate life to suit our whims. It frees the heart to play all the notes therein, and the wisdom of when to play those notes. We feel and live the holographic interconnection of all the lives we love and touch. It does cause your footsteps to follow in grace and blows all the rules away for the greatest good.

This was an original state of being when people were nomadic. It harmonizes well with all life and the planet. It keeps one safe as it increases awareness. When humans are in this state of stillness, we will feel what the land needs, what we need, indeed, what all life needs, because the fray of extraneous noise is silenced, and there is only pure communion with what surrounds you. This is a state of being where the land can heal you, you heal the land and the glow goes both ways. It is way of being the spoken word is not yet capable of expressing. When words fail, we are there.

 




2 comments:

  1. "This is a state of being where the land can heal you, you heal the land and the glow goes both ways." YES.

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    Replies
    1. More and more are awakening to this fact Darla. We are a society of props, there really is so little we need to flourish.

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