Reader, I promise you that I don't set out to compare dressage to Eastern influences, but yet again, my mind has drawn such a correlation. We've discussed in the past the "Dharma of Dressage" as being relaxation and strength. Along with this, I would like to examine the idea of passive resistance.While passive resistance is by no means an idea of Eastern origin, it did, however, enter my thoughts as a result of my readings about our good buddy, Mohandas Ghandi (affectionately known as Bapu, or "father"), and his use of passive resistance first in South Africa, and later to help his native India achieve independence from the British Empire (I almost typed Imperial Empire :-).
I made the oblique connection between Gandhi and dressage while teaching Nic to rein-back. In his book, De Kunffy explains that the rider must not use the reins actively to make the horse step back; instead, the reins are to remain passive, yet blocking any forward movement.
Gandhi supported the use of passive resistance against the British because he understood that the Empire's forces were more powerful than India's, and that India just wouldn't win against a stronger force. Similarly, and most obviously, a horse is physically much stronger than a person. As such, using force against the horse is just silly; using passive resistance to show the horse what the rider wants is more effective.
Unless the horse is being an ass, most corrections in dressage are about passive resistance - make the right response easy for the horse, and the wrong response harder for the horse. When attempting to teach Nic not to rush and instead swing her back and maintain the same tempo, instead of holding her back (which produced no effect except a huge underneck muscle), I made it easier for her to maintain the same tempo by making the exercise harder if she rushed. In other words, if she rushed, she had to push on a 10m circle or in a 5 loop serpentine until she calmed down, in which case we resumed on a larger circle. Voila, passive resistance in effect.
The result? A much more peaceful horse that adheres to the Dharma of Dressage. To that end, I'm adding the notion of passive resistance to our ever-growing treatise The Equestrian.
To update from my last post (July 1st) in which I discussed Nicole's bracing in downward transitions. In his book, De Kunffy states that when making a down transition from canter to trot, half halt the horse by increasing the aids already in use and inviting the horse's forehand to slow down. I knew this, but lets face it, in the thick of things, I just wasn't doing this. So, I've reapplied this knowledge, and lo and behold, we got 2 down transitions in which Nic didn't brace. They weren't pretty, but she did hold herself. Her canter is becoming more balanced as well.
I had a lesson with Lula May last Saturday in which we started Nic on counter canter. It took her about 5 tries before she got it. Here are the results:
