Horse Wisdom
Horse Wisdom - As a teenager I was an avid horse rider. I rode with my cousin at our friends place where she boarded her horse and where I used to ride this willful Shetland Pony. I remember always wanting to own a horse but it wasn’t something that I ever thought was possible. I don’t recall if I asked for one or just thought that dreams were unattainable but after my spiritual awakening I was guided back to my childhood dreams of owning a horse. A dream that I suppressed and forgot.
Today, I now have brought a very special horse into our family. His name is Bilbo. Bilbo is a 11.5 year old Fjord cross and he is incredibly handsome…lots of bias there!!!!
Right now I have my neighbours horses in our field and I have been working with them daily to build my confidence with horses and they have been teaching me their wisdom.
Yesterday I walked out to the field and I regularly feed one of the older horses (Smarty) that used to be a racehorse. He is not all that old but he is around 25. He is in need of some specialty feed as he under weight before my neighbours let me take them into our field. Everyday, at liberty, I guide Smarty out of the field and he eats his special meal. It was natural for me to start working with these horses at liberty since they first came to me. I noticed that the horses were wondering or roaming the property, I got anxious, I could see how they react to my energy. They are incredibly sensitive to their environments and to the people that are around them. One day, I kept petting Smarty while he was eating and he would pin his ears and swing his head towards me. He showed me this a number of times until finally I heard…."don’t you ever learn?” OMG - I was taken aback. Where this came from I do not know but it sounded like what my father used to say to me when I was a kid It was in my cells, my DNA, my memory, in my energy field. It was a learning that was invaluable to see from the place of observation and detachment. To acknowledge the pattern of parenting that was lodged in me. After that day, the compulsion to pet Smarty while he was eating was gone. I was finally able to let this go and learn that he needed respect, I needed to learn and that “don’t you ever learn” was no longer serving me. It was incredibly powerful. I learned to let go. In that letting go I found the habit disappear.
I mean that is only one instance of pure magic that I have experienced with horses. From a healing and spiritual stand point, being with horses is a gift. They are more divinely connected to source, they are not without their own baggage, and they are wise. They too have emotions and things to teach us. As the Indigenous people have been doing for years, connecting with Mother Earth’s animals, we too are now able to create a space that allows for us to connect with all of God’s creatures.
Horses typically reflect, like a mirror, what you need to learn within yourselves. When I watch them from a distance, they act differently than when I am near them. Usually when I am near them, I can see what is going on inside of me and it is reflected within the herd. They are spiritual beings that also have the ability to heal, learn and move past their pain and emotions to a more fulfilling life, but we need to be more open and receptive to their messages and that is easy to do when you are in nature, quieting your mind and opening to all the possibilities. It is my belief that horses are here to teach us. They have allowed us to work with them so that we may become more of who we really are in our soul. So it is of no coincidence that people that have horses that have behaviourally issues, usually haven’t yet gotten the message that horses are tied to us and they are reflecting what we need to learn or we are not hearing what they are saying. Whatever the case listening, learning and healing are what we need to do.
For me, it was only 2 or 3 years ago that I couldn’t even get behind a horse for all the fear within me, to guiding them at liberty and standing in my power while allowing them to stand in theirs. Today I feel that all the time that I spend with horses has been a huge source of strengthening in my spiritual practice that has allowed me to reflect on what I need to work on within myself. I am so grateful for the day that I learned my lifelong Spirit Animal is a horse and that I am able to fulfill my life’s purpose of working with people and horses. Because we can find spirituality in anything that we do, but it is so special when you can learn it from a spiritual sentient being that is incredibly wise as the horse.
So for those of you that are guided to healing with horses, I am incredibly privileged to work with a herd of horses and with Bilbo to assist you in your healing. If you are drawn to this and are interested in a session with horses, please contact me. I would be honoured to work with you and the herd.
Sending you the energy of horse wisdom.
Jackie Gutknecht