To advance in dressage is to be able to take perceptions we experience when we work with the horse and make them unique. Every perception has the possibility of uniqueness certainly, but it is how the mind is attracted to and groups perception that makes certain experiences magical.
The discovery of magic in our work with the horse that makes dressage such a powerful experience. I am not talking about a theoretical appreciation here but an actual experience. To know this magic is to cultivate a certain plasticity of mind which naturally arises as we mature in our understanding.
“Open minded” is certainly one way of seeing this but it is more because it is not about just an intellectual thing. It is about connecting feeling, thinking and physical being together through a harmonious cadence with the horse.
We literally become one with the horse and the plasticity of mind connects each moment in time. The mind sees relationships between points but does not seek to hold or freeze the points. Flow is established and a certain equanimity arises between perceptions.
This perhaps is one of the word puzzles of dressage for some, while others dismiss it. What is perhaps more important is to keep these words in mind for as you advance in your dressage education, you will find a moments where the experience with the horse just twinkles a bit. With awareness, the twinkle will become a regular part of the experience and the “centaur moment” will become part of your normal experience.
This is the art. This is classical dressage. It is the living experience of magic with the horse. The only barrier to this experience is in you, for this magic is always present. It is about true educations and the openness to risk mixing mind. This is the dressage I adore.
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