As a person progresses in their understanding of horse language, with its syntax of anatomy, physiology, and psychology, there may come a time when it is appropriate to get on a horse's back.  Just as signposts point the way to a destination, I can give a hint about some of the elements that will need to be understood by the person who has endeavored to learn enough of the horse's language to get to a point where riding might be a helpful step in their lessons.

As each human endeavors to learn the way a horse's body is designed, the way certain muscles, tendons and ligaments work in concert with the skeletal structure, and the capacities and limits of these physiological elements, he will learn ways to "play" with the horse which lead to more freedom and balance for the horse. In the same way that yoga can help balance our own bodies and spirits, the person will learn the yoga which balances and frees a horse to enable her to greater expression.  

The next signpost is when the person learns how to work with the horse with greater discipline, where both human and horse apply themselves to specific elements which develop the physiology of the horse and the mental focus and concentration of both horse and human. By this time, another signpost is that the personal desire of the human to ride the horse will have naturally dropped away. A person at this level of understanding would have no more wish to bridle and saddle her equine teacher than she would to bridle and saddle her best human friend and prod her along a nice "trail ride".

If you are at the beginning of this journey and can't quite understand yet how a person could have a fulfilling relationship with a horse without riding, maybe it would be helpful to have a little carrot hung out to tempt you. When a human has learned the horse's language well enough that she begins to dance with her equine partner, she collects and balances him not as the end result of pulling, tugging, and restraining, but as a result of speaking a common language, never causing pain at any point along the path. She simply learns how to direct his movements as a conductor leads an orchestra; only then will the horse's anatomy reveal that he can indeed carry a rider, on a strengthened spine that has not been weakened by hours of a rider pounding on the saddle, with muscles that are free from painful pressure sores, carried in a flexed and contracted state which leads to higher blood pressure within the muscle and the ability of this muscle to endure the pressure from a rider for a few minutes at a time.

At this point there can be no confusion; when the entire relationship has been built without physical restraints, there can be no doubt in the human's mind that she has achieved something beyond winning or losing, she has gained understanding. In this light, the bad parts of human character drop away.

In the final analysis, when we follow this path we will experience the gift that the horses have been holding for us.  They can help us relearn our own ancient language and to live harmoniously with ourselves and the other residents of this planet. I hope in other articles to be able to find the right words to express the fullness of what I'm starting to experience but perhaps I'll have to be content with pointing out signposts.