Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Xenophon

"Besides, the mane, forelock and tail have been given to the horse by the gods as an ornament."

"The one best rule and practice in dealing with a horse is never to approach him in anger; for anger is a reckless thing, so that it often makes a man do what he must regret."

"Moreover, when the horse is shy of anything and will not come near it, you should teach him that there is nothing to be afraid of, either with the help of a plucky horse—which is the surest way—or else by touching the object that looks alarming yourself, and gently leading the horse up to it."

XenophonThe Art of Horsemanship, 430 BC - 354 BC

2 comments:

Pat Tillett said...

I don't know much about horses, but that was really nice..

Kate said...

My favorite part is that the man who said those lines was a Greek general (or equivalent) in the middle ages (well, 400-ish BC)(obviously I'm not a historian). It was a period in history that was not known for its humane treatment of animals, and yet Xenophon's training methods were all about kindness and consideration for the horse. Definitely revolutionary thinking for the time . . . he was an admirable man!

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