Rein Aids: An Introductory Word

Thus far I have deliberately left out a discussion on rein aids for the simple reason that I believe the system of managing the horse needs to be solidly based on the seat. Once the horse can feel the rider 're-fueling' him with his own energy, freeing him from the confines of the hand and vice-like grip of the legs, and once enough channels are open to support and allow better energy flow, then we can begin the business of shaping finer pathways through specific qualitative and quantitative use of the hands.
Rein aiding is not for the execution of a movement so much as it is for helping the horse as he NEEDS it! Some books will give rein aids one way and some another but these are only guides. It is up to the rider to educate himself on what various rein actions do and then for him to feel what is going on in the horse, feel where the hindquarters or shoulders are positioned and how well they are linking to the horse, decide what needs to change, and then determine how much and what kind of rein aid is needed. Riders make the mistake of turning rein aids into a blur without considering the incredible sensitivity in the mouth and neck of the horse. The horse is capable of quite sophisticated understanding of these aids if the rider will take the time to introduce them and to clarify them without losing patience when the horse feels out of balance and then it is back to a blur again. There are 2 reins(and sometimes 4 to coordinate) and each can have different actions in the mouth and on the neck.
In order to clearly carry out the intent of the mind through the hand, the hand cannot in any way be concerned with the rider's stability and balance in the saddle. So before teaching the rider to steer round, curve or mold the horse with the hand, I insist the rider patiently discovers first the power of the seat and learn to direct wayward energy that tends to unbalance into a simple steady hand that has but one job---to allow and send forward. Turning can be accomplished with the seat, as can rounding and connecting the horse back to front.
After establishing this it is then time to introduce rein aids, which cannot be properly appreciated outside the context of the seat or the dynamics of motion. Only when the rider learns to send energy forward and create a steady form with the seat can the horse's head and neck hang free and develop better musculature and fewer contractions from minimized interference from the hand. It is so easy for the horse to build resistances to the hand and ways to escape its proper effect. One example is the 'rubbery' neck that lacks a strong muscular base. Too much turning and bending of the neck does not render it better at accepting the rein aid!! Similarly, for the neck that is tight and resistant, bending more only sets the horse up to require stronger aiding! We know 2 wrongs don't make a right! So I suggest we keep rein aiding to a minimum and for as long as necessary until the action of the seat, through the directing of the horse's energy, establishes a more stable form in the horse and the rider has developed sufficient tone and stability. Then the neck and head of the horse will hang free and be more open to the subtle finesse of the hand.
I am not trying to malign the hand. Instead I am trying to impart the significance of it. Something so VITAL to the dance is how we talk with our hands. When we come to the dance we must shake off the crudeness of our 'handiwork' from the other areas of our lives. Think of your horse like a lover.....the hand, a caress.