Did you know that horses, and animals in general, can be role models for what it means to live mindfully? Mindful awareness is a term that describes the state of living in the present moment, where we pay attention to what is happening right now just as it is.
This sounds simple, but can be incredibly hard to do depending on what is being noticed. Depending on the particular instant in time, paying close attention can be a challenge. The mind tends to wander and naturally focus on several things at once, including things that happened in the past and things that may happen in the future. Staying attentive to a specific aspect in the here and now, for example by noticing the breathing sensations as one inhales and exhales, does not necessarily mean that attention is always focused on the here and now. Sometimes when practicing being aware of the present, the mind wanders elsewhere. When this happens, noticing where the mind is at and then gently returning attention back to the chosen focus is how we practice being mindful (in our example, one returns attention back to the sensation of breathing).
Another thing that can make paying attention to the present moment a challenge is when we start noticing things that we don’t like. For example, there may be uncomfortable thoughts about oneself or one’s life, or feelings of disappointment or fears about something to come in the future. So most of us tend to find it easier to pay attention to the things we enjoy, and fully immerse ourselves in the present moment when we are content or happy with whatever is arising right now. Being mindfully present is about noticing whatever arises, even when we dislike what we are noticing. This is not easy, and being mindful takes practice! That is why practicing exercises can build our mindfulness skills, and make it easier to be more aware of things arising in each present moment.
What does this have to do with horses? Horses naturally inhabit the present moment, and their state of awareness is naturally tuned in to the here and now. This does not imply that they cannot retain memories and associations of past experience, good or bad, or learn through training. As well, horses can spook or become nervous about things they anticipate will happen at times, as those with horse experience know. In terms of how they experience life however, horses tend to be fully immersed in things arising in the here and now. The more focused we are on the present, the easier it is to observe what’s going on for them and to connect to them in the moment when it counts, which is RIGHT NOW.
The wonderful thing about being around horses is that when we are with them, we naturally tend to attune to the present moment. They offer us the gift of bringing us into a mindful state of being with them, if we are open to the invitation. They guide us into this present-moment state of awareness (or mindful awareness) simply by being themselves. When we notice what our horses are doing, stay tuned in to them and register how our bodies respond to their movements and cues, we automatically focus our attention on what’s happening right now, rather than being preoccupied with other things. Overthinking or staying inside our heads doesn’t work if we want to really connect with our horses. This will be a common theme of the posts; we wanted to introduce this here. Truly being with and connecting with our horses requires us to be mindfully aware of each present moment. When we are with our horses in this way, we have the opportunity to practice everyday mindfulness. This is what we mean when we say that Horses are Our Mindful Role Models.