Consensual Leadership - Way of the Horse

Way of the Horse by Linda Kohanov & Kim McElroy, 2007

31st of January was Chinese New Year, and 2014 is the Year of the Horse. I'm taking that as a good reason to use the oracle Way of the Horse a lot this year, starting with a one-card draw asking for my 'Card of the Year'. I drew a card called 'The Herd'.

This card explores the complicated and ever-changing dynamics of leadership within the herd. According to the companion book, horses do not have one constant leader, but the alpha role switches from horse to horse according to the situation at hand. 'In these equine communities,' Lina Kohanov writes, 'what an individual knows about, what he cares about, or what he's calm about determines leadership, as all members have some talent, drive, or experience the others value or, at times, defer to. ...Consensual leadership draws on the wisdom of sentience of the entire herd. It is, to a great extent, improvisational. ' The key phrases assigned to this card are 'Authentic Community', 'Consensual Leadership' and 'Balancing Individual and Group Needs'.

The sun beams down out of the clouds at a black horse standing a bit off from the herd to the left of the card. He is the usual leader of the herd, but in this card he has dropped back and other horses are leading. They are on the move, so perhaps leadership has naturally transferred to an older, more sure horse who has knowledge of the terrain. Our black horse will defer to his knowledge, let him (or her) take the lead. He becomes part of the followers.

The dynamics of the herd are like that. Fluid, depending on the situation.

I can see many applications of this advice in my life. First, I need to recognize the many communities I belong to, and examine my notions about my place in them. My position in any of the groups should be fluid. I should not always expect others to listen to everything I say, and neither should I always silently follow. I don't have to always be right. But I don't have to always keep my opinions to myself, either. There will be times when I may find myself suddenly being looked to as a leader, when suddenly people are waiting for me to make a decision, show a way forward. And there will also be times when I will need to defer to others, not be too headstrong.

There's another aspect of the card, 'Balancing Individual and Group Needs' -- the card I've drawn reminds me that I must always be aware that I am in a group. I am always part of a group. I do not lose myself in the group, but neither am I ever truly outside of a group. 'No man is an island, entire of itself,' as John Donne wrote.

Way of the Horse: The Herd

Way of the Horse, Kohanov

It's the last day of our week with Way of the Horse, and can you believe I've drawn another card in landscape orientation? Funny, that. But, wow, what a card. The first thing you see is the gorgeous herd of horses thundering along together under a cloudy sky, then when you look again -- the sun is actually the eye of a horse's head appearing in the clouds! Gorgeous.

This card is subtitled 'Consensual Leadership', and in the companion book Kohanov makes a case against the notion of 'pecking order' by describing her observations of her own herd, and how different horses become the alpha horse in different situations. It just depends on what's happening and where a horse's strengths lie, and the other horses seem to recognize and acquiesce to this. It's a fluid kind of organic teamwork.

Way of the Horse: Redemption of the Masculine

Way of the Horse, Kohanov

It's funny how I keep drawing cards that are in the landscape orientation, as they are definitely a minority in Way of the Horse, by Linda Kohanov. This card, called 'Merlin's Spirit', is particularly difficult for me to relate to my own experience. It's a rather complicated card. Kohanov's companion book devotes ten pages to it!

Way of the Horse: Dominance

Way of the Horse, Kohanov

Today's card from Way of the Horse by Linda Kohanov, is called Dominance. It shows a close up of the head and neck of a horse who is struggling against the reins. Veins stand out in his neck and his teeth are showing. His ears are turned back. He looks quite unhappy and stressed.

Way of the Horse: Out of Body

Way of the Horse, Linda Kohanov

The 'Out of Body' referred to in this card from Way of the Horse by Linda Kohanov comes in two types:
1) the 'freeze' response of the prey, and 2) the 'lost time' of the artist.

Way of the Horse: Point of View

Way of the Horse, Kohanov

As prey animals, horses are always on the alert. Today's card from Way of the Horse, by Linda Kohanov, shows two horses who have been grazing suddenly looking around, clearly on the alert and ready to make adjustments to their actions instantaneously.

It certainly doesn't pay for a horse to be in denial about the present moment. What would happen to a horse who kept its head down and thought to itself, 'Oh, it's just my imagination. Oh, I'm probably overreacting. I don't want to make a scene.' It wouldn't last long! Similarly, a horse will react to a stimulus, and can quickly assess the true danger in a situation. If nothing's wrong, they calmly go back into the moment and continue to graze, with no paranoia or racing thoughts,' Oh, what if I was wrong? Oh, what if something is really out there? I knew this was going to happen, I knew today was going to be one of those days!'

Way of the Horse: Black Horse Wisdom

Way of the Horse Oracle by Linda Kohanov

This lovely card from Linda Kohanov's Way of the Horse Oracle depicts a beautiful black horse prancing in slanting grey light, its hooves kicking up a powder of fine grey dust. Look closely and you will see the horse is looking at her shadow on the ground, dancing with it. All blacks, greys, and silvers in this card. A card without colour, with no sense of place. A card of the shadow.

Way of the Horse: Boundary Dance

I bought Way of the Horse by Linda Kohanov on a whim the other day. I have no idea why. It's not like I've been into horses, not since I was a kid, or even been thinking much about them really, other than looking at a possibility of  retreat to a place called 'Intuitive Horse', and of course then there was that weird thing with the horse meat in the burgers (not an issue for me because 1) I'm vegan and 2) I think there's no real distinction between eating one animal or another -- flesh is flesh. Though I suppose if something is labelled beef you have a right to expect it not to be made of horse. But I digress). Actually it was the week of the horse meat debacle that I discovered this deck, oddly enough. Maybe without all that horse talk, it would not have caught my eye.

Anyway, today's card is called Boundary Dance. It seems obvious what is going on in this card -- two horses are engaged in a ritual of dominance and hierarchy. Boundary setting. However, the book calls it 'a tenuous dance of respect and connection,' which is actually a very healthy and more realistic way of looking at boundary setting. Actually, setting boundaries isn't about determining who gets the upper hand and who has to back down, though it might sometimes look that way.