Nevzorov Haute Ecole Equine Anthology by NevzorovHauteEcole

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF’S WORD

This is a School journal; this means, practically all of its articles are the official educational manual of Nevzorov Haute Ecole. According to tradition, everything that is directly related to Haute Ecole – the High School of horsemanship – is called School. Times have changed. Today the methods of the old School appear as absurdity, stupidity and primitive barbarity. Nowadays mastery in the direct meaning of the word is work with a horse without any tools of control. Nevzorov Haute Ecole doesn’t tolerate any punishments, bridles, halters and other paralyzers of the horse’s head, which destroy the horse’s natural balance and whose action is based on causing pain and fear in the horse. Nevzorov Haute Ecole – the School - regards the horse as an exact science, and as such it is still the School with its everlasting aspiration for development and perfection. In order to understand a horse as an “exact science” one needs indepth knowledge in history, anatomy, physiology, veterinary, management, and biomechanics. Of course, some care will be devoted to the horse’s main enemy – equestrian sport in all of its guises: from hire riding clubs to racing and harness racing. Almost all “horse knowledge” we have today is made of the most barbaric narrow-mindedness, absurdity, silly cruelty and pragmatic ignorance. It is clear that our journal will provoke denial in those who have always seen, and want to see a horse as “a programmable piece of meat”, which must service different kinds of entertainment and fun; however, it is not intended to this sort of public. «Nevzorov Haute Ecole Equine Anthology» is an edition for scholars who understand the true meaning of the word “horse”. I do not recommend all the rest even to take it in their hands. Editor-in-Chief Lydia Nevzorova

Horse Encyclopedia by Alexander Nevzorov This film marked the beginning of great conflict between people who truly love the horse and people who want to exploit it as before. Dozens of chapters – about great people and terrible epochs, about manege elements and famous horses, about scientific discoveries and age�old delusions – turned the horse world upside down. The film was released in Russia in 2004 with runaway success and received awards in the Houston and New York Film Festivals. Innovative, unique, based on science and inspired by the sincerest loving view of relationship between two creatures that have walked side by side for centuries, but have never listened to each other. The film has already changed the destinies of hundreds of horses and humans and has become an important hippological document, vital to any serious manege work.

Nevzorov Haute Ecole Principles The film brings a viewer right into the heart of the School – to the School manege. For the first time ever, an outsider can watch the most important principles of work with a horse at liberty. Following the camera’s lens, a spectator follows horse education in the most difficult High School elements, learns the importance of “Discipline” and “Composure”, understands the purpose and practical value of the cordeo, touching techniques and the practice of longeing. The comments of Alexander Nevzorov, which accompany every segment, interpret what is essential for understanding and mastering the School work. The magnetic grace and power of the School horses, the marvelous harmony of their interactions with the Master make “The Principles” not just a priceless hippological educational edition, but also a rare and beautiful film, which once and for all will change a person’s view of the horse.

The Horse Crucified and Risen For five centuries High School masters have fought an uncompromising and unrelenting war against the ignorance, abomination and beastliness that have been concentrated in equestrian sport. But here and now, at the turn of the millennium, when horse torture seems common, acceptable, and legal; old prophecies come true. A man stepped forth to open a new, truthful page in equine history and has brought us this film… In this film – we see the victory of the great School master, preceptor Antoine de Pluvinel over sadistic James Fillis, equestrian sport ideologist. In this film – we see the newest scientific discoveries, which will make people change their views on the horse and its destiny in the human’s world. In this film – we see ancient mysteries, knightly orders and bloody events of past epochs. This film also features the first horses in the world to have received an academic High School education at liberty and their teacher, manege Master, the founder and teacher of today’s Nevzorov Haute Ecole, Alexander Nevzorov. “The Horse Crucified and Risen” shines a light on the most important events in hippological history and gives a viewer the understanding of the essence of horsemanship, which is the basis for understanding the principles and practices of NHE.

www.NevzorovHauteEcole.com

Journal@HauteEcole.ru

school ÂŠ Lydia Nevzorova

mount

ractate T on a school

SCHOOL TRACTATE ON A SCHOOL MOUNT

NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE EQUINE ANTHOLOGY, VOL. 1

TRACTATE ON A SCHOOL MOUNT SCHOOL

A MAN ON THE BACK

understanding a horse an exact science 100% of a horse’s feelings have absolutely precise physiological, biomechanical, myological, psychological and other characteristics that can be understood by man. Thank god, everything is known. Everything is more or less clear.

NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE EQUINE ANTHOLOGY, VOL. 1

SCHOOL TRACTATE ON A SCHOOL MOUNT The School mount of a rider, which is the topic of our conversation, is developed from an exact knowledge of a horses’ feelings about a man being on its back, and from a desire to minimize the harm and discomfort that a rider always brings to the horse. I’ll explain now that presence of a man on the horse’s back never gives a horse any pleasant feelings. Without any regard to whom that human is. It makes no difference. It may be a refined riding master of the Royal Riding School of Vienna, who has been polishing his mount for 30 years, a thoughtless person who rents a horse, a show-jump rider who finds a special pleasure in torturing a horse, or a conscientious Natural Horsemanship student who consciously doesn’t want to “abuse a horse”. I reiterate that this doesn’t matter. The physiological feelings stemming from the myological system of the horse’s back, dermis and epidermis, are nearly all the same. It sounds paradoxical, but I will further clarify and explain this postulate. The way to calculate a horse’s feelings is quite simple. In all cases the same laws of physiology apply, according to which the soft tissues of the back, main skeletal and subdermal muscles – undergo compression and this always causes physiologically-based negative feelings or sensations, from discomfort to pain. Feeling pleasure from discomfort or pain isn’t an attribute of any living being. If riding on horseback gave the rider all the painful feelings that the rider brings to the horse, I can tell you that horseback riding as a historical entity wouldn’t exist. Man would just anathematize the horse. Any talk about “love” that a horse has for being ridden, “trail rides”, or “pleasure riding”, or in general, to the presence of a man on its back, is a very funny dilettantism. It is a very vulgar and absolutely blind substitution of reality by what is desired. It is the substitution of a very convenient stereotype for the truth. This stereotype is propagated by what I would call a “mucky girl.” 1 Weak-minded and hypnotized by so-called “equestrian experts”, they repeat this rubbish with different degrees of ecstasy and persuasion. It is interesting that the irony of saying that any other creature “loves” when somebody sits on its back, batters at the muscles and the spine with all his weight and compresses the living tissues on its back does not come to anybody’s mind. This effect is always uncomfortable for any living tissue. Panegyrics of horseback riding within equestrian circles is sometimes an attempt to justify a personal desire to entertain, but more often, it is a slavish, unthinking dependency on stereotypes. Taking into account the low intellect of equestrians it is no surprise. Statements like “horses 1

love equestrian sport” sound even funnier, or the thought that the horse is “happy” under the rider. In order to prove such statements a whole set of complicated experiments would be needed to show that some horses must be masochists, which means they gain pleasure from physiological discomfort or pain. Such experiments haven’t been conducted; there are no scientific proofs that a horse with a masochistic mind exists. The concept that a person sitting on a horse’s back brings with it some kind of “pleasure” is a dense misunderstanding of the main principles of a horse’s myology and physiology and all the principles of elementary physiology of mammals in general. It is an absolute and PRINCIPAL ignorance of the horse. However, sportsmen cannot admit to weakmindedness, and they are doomed to ignorance. Their relationship with a horse is based only on strong painful impact. The horse’s feelings, in fact, do not worry, have never worried and shouldn’t worry them. The process of raping, as we know it, doesn’t assume even the slightest interest in the feelings of the person being raped (or only of an increase in the pleasure of the rapist from the sufferings that are caused). As soon as the truth about the relationship between a man and a horse becomes known, equestrian sport ends. Ignorance is its only cause. I feel like I can speak out bravely. Sportsmen, even if they began reading this tractate, are already asleep. Their small and regularly-perspiring-under-a-helmetor-top-hat brain refuses to perceive the text, everything distorts and mixes-up. This is excellent. We can now speak calmly and openly. So, horseback riding, the human presence on top on the horse’s back, until now has been an important School discipline. Yes, the proportion of the studies “from the ground”, “in hand”, or “at liberty’ to the studies “under saddle” is nearly 90% to 10%, but these 10 % exist. Maybe the next, even more honest and more enlightened generations will perceive this discipline (riding) as a barbarism and perversion, but for the present moment, as I have already said, it exists. Yes, Nevzorov Haute Ecole has a rather high goal and absolutely honorable methods. It seems that we are completely different from sportsmen. However, as I have already mentioned, there is the matter of the soft tissues of the horses’ back, which is the reason for discomfort or pain.

A «mucky girl» is Alexander Nevzorov’s term for girls of varying ages who work with horses without any basis of hippological or scientific knowledge about the horse. They smoke, drink, use slang, beat horses with whips and use the phenomenon of NCS (neurocranial shock) brought about by the use of bits to control the horse.

NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE EQUINE ANTHOLOGY, VOL. 1

TRACTATE ON A SCHOOL MOUNT SCHOOL CONFESSION Let’s frankly confess that the Nevzorov Haute Ecole Rider, when on horseback, in principle, can bring to the horse the same unpleasant physiological feelings as an alcoholic show-jumper. I assure you, the endomysium or perimysium of the muscle experiences compression and distress, which translates to discomfort or pain.

By itself, it weighs about three grams. Now we tie it like a girth around the scale, not very tightly. Now the scale feels the string like it’s something that weighs 4 kilos (8.8 pounds). Its weight has essentially been multiplied.

The title, degree, and intentions of a rider aren’t important. The horse doesn’t care if this discomfort comes from the desire to just stupidly “pleasure ride”, jump over painted bars or from the fine intention to rehearse a difficult element. This confession is a turning point, an incredibly important moment. But even its sincerity should be based on absolute knowledge. What happens inside a horse’s back? An average TOTAL surface area of the panels of the saddle that contact the horse is about 300–500 cm2. But this is the total area; let’s not fool ourselves.

This figure means, that with a saddle perfectly fitted to the specific horse’s back, with an ideal, “glued” School seat on the soft tissues of the back, and to be precise, on the tissues of the transversospinal muscles, the trapezius muscle, the tissues of the longissimus muscle, the epidermis and dermis which is filled with sensitive receptors, on all of these structures we have a pressure, on average, of 1.5 kilos (3.3 pounds) per square centimeter.

We can and we must speak only about the surface area of the strongest pressure, i.e. about those miserable 50 cm2, that have the most influence on the horses’ back. An average rider’s weight is 70 kilograms (154 pounds). The pressure for 1 cm2 of the horses’ back is about 1 kilogram, 300 grams per cm2 This figure can vary from 1 to 1.5 kilos (2.2 to 3.3 pounds). What does this figure mean?

A “crushing” effect between two objects took place.

Take a bar weighing 1.5 kilograms, with an end that has the surface area of one square centimeter and put it on your back, near the spine, asking somebody to hold it so it doesn’t fall, but let it rest on your back vertically. Imagine that there are 50 of points of pressure like this – united or not. And that’s not all.

There is a simple School example done with a string, which can explain a lot. We take a simple scale. It should tell us about what horse feels. We put a common leather string on the scale.

The average weight of a saddle is about 5 kilos (11 pounds). This is if you just rest it on the back, not tightening the girth. And if the girth is tightened? How many times will the pressure increase? Not the weight, but the force of pressure on the horse’s back?

NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE EQUINE ANTHOLOGY, VOL. 1 10

SCHOOL MICHAEL BEVILACQUA

Michael Bevilacqua Senior NHE Representative Worldwide It was summer vacation out in the country. My first real introduction to the horse world was watching a two year old horse a neighbour brought in just for pleasure and training. The horse was scarred over the nose from a rubbing halter or chain during frenzied lungeing, and welts on the hindquarters from whipping. When his training was done for the day, I would stand on the fence to his outdoor box and try to get him to take a bite of a carrot instead of taking a serious bite of me. I knew nothing about

horses or training them but I knew this horse needed a friend. I was 9. Horses always got my attention, but I never pursued the regular route of going to a school and taking riding classes. Life moved on. I did some military service, became a pilot on my own, did my own security consulting work and counter-espionage security for military contracts, and also a bodyguard for corporate clients. I got tired of very long hours and time away from home. I decided to take a break and a riding class.

Without knowing the science side of things or physical reasons, at the time, I already refused to ride with a bit. I went by my own intuition judging from the look on the horseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s face.

23 NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE EQUINE ANTHOLOGY, VOL. 1

For the very first time in such a long time, when I was walking with that horse, I felt the moment. My world had been in overdrive and my mind always flooded with thoughts. My work was to be too aware of what man could do because of greed or hate. With this horse the whole world faded away - even the instructor! That horse returned to me an inner peace and awareness that I had long lost. My life would not be the same after that day. Much was learned from different people in different areas of the horse world

HORSE REVOLUTION EQUESTRIAN SPORTS. «SECRETS OF ART»

27 NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE EQUINE ANTHOLOGY, VOL. 1

HORSE REVOLUTION EQUESTRIAN SPORTS. «SECRETS OF ART»

equestrian sports © Nevzorov Haute Ecole

«secrets of art»

part one *

neurocranialis shock

* This article is a material of Nevzorov Haute Ecole Research Center

It is clear, that not a single regular or accidental reader of this magazine will get as low as doing ES (equestrian sports). Nevertheless it seems to me that some profound and adequate analysis of the base facts is absolutely necessary for one to get a general education in hippology.

NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE EQUINE ANTHOLOGY, VOL. 1 28

EQUESTRIAN SPORTS. «SECRETS OF ART»

NHE-1580

NHE-1231

NHE-1650

While this phenomenon still exists it is necessary to gain the understanding of it. It is already well known that ES is extremely unnatural, torturing and disastrous for any horse. But competitions of different levels and Olympiads are still taking place. And it’s not just people who are taking part in it, but horses too. It’s clear that participation of horses in it all is because they are forced, they don’t volunteer. It’s clear, that the iron tools fixed in their mouths are a frightful argument designed for torturing and killing of a horse, compelling enough to make any horse obey even an ape that is sitting on its back. The bit. A barbaric invention of the bronze century, yet still being used in spite of the fact that veterinary science has already passed its verdict against it. But we don’t want to limit our explanations just to the term “horse bits” or “bit”. What we need is serious and qualitative analysis, separate and apart from its use. So-called «ass-caretakers» or jockeys of all trades, as well as sportsmen, make all imaginable efforts to justify the use of bits. Taking their opinion into account on this matter is senseless, as their motivation is obvious. The point is that exact and perfect scientific knowledge of the use of the bit and its impact is alas, an integral part of the history of hippology. No doubt, its application is shameful and neolithic, but it doesn’t mean that we should be ignorant about techniques of its application. Horse and man’s interactions have been based on these techniques for a very long time now. That is why the relationship has transformed into such an ugly form. We know that being controlled by horror, pain, fear of pain and beating, horses are jumping over painted bars (show-jumping) or demonstrate reflex, marionette like painful movements (dressage), only for the fun of the audience. And they don’t do it just once or twice.

29 NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE EQUINE ANTHOLOGY, VOL. 1

NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE EQUINE ANTHOLOGY, VOL. 1 30

NHE-1851

NHE-2340

NHE-1895 © Nevzorov Haute Ecole

NHE-1673 © Nevzorov Haute Ecole

Let’s leave it to amateurs and absolute idiots to tell stories about horses, which perform those actions ,that are considered normal in sports, at their own will. It is imbecile bullshit which contradicts physiology, anatomy and psychology of a horse, and cannot be taken seriously. But the term «bit» is not an answer to all questions in spite of its terrible implication for any horse. If it was all about the bit, this instrument would easily enable everyone involved in this sport to become Olympic champions. Amateur and professional horse riders put the iron tool of identical configuration, with identical strength and impact of pain into the horse’s mouth. And nevertheless not all riders become champions. The majority (99 %) of so-called riders demonstrate ridiculous or better to say, shameful failures (even according to their own sport norms and requirements) and look ridiculous and shameful. So what’s the secret? How do some riders force the horse to perform these completely senseless and extremely painful actions? Are there any special tricks or basic methods that work which have been developed and thoroughly tested? Does their «correct» application guarantee the success in ES business? Such a set of methods does exist. ES success lies ONLY in mastering these methods, their constant improvement, and in extremely ruthless application of them. Taking into account, that all these tricks cause unbearable pain effects on mouth, neurological system of head, and destroy the whole physiological and anatomic system of the horse, every rider has to have appropriate level of «deafness» to horse’s sufferings. The man who is capable of feeling what a horse feels, would simply go insane if he’d feel the effect of these tricks just once in his life. There is no exaggeration here. One should remember that there were people servicing fascist gas chambers and they indeed found pleasure in doing so. But others committed suicide or went crazy afterwards.

HORSE REVOLUTION

ÂŠ S. Spartanceva

HORSE REVOLUTION CRUSHING OUT Author: “I knew that one day it would happen, and tried to prepare for this in my heart, studying photos from necropsies, resolutely downloading internetphotos of the most serious wounds, trying to get used to seeing blood and gore. And before this day I fondly thought that I was ready. But real life threw before my eyes things that I knew and suspected only in theory, and now my life became divided into the periods BEFORE and AFTER that photo shoot…”

Comment: I’ve decided to edit this article myself and to delete nearly all of the author’s emotions from it; all her hate, all her despair and all her pain, all of these extremely strong words which were born from a very natural - and very noble hatred of those who make all these activities typical and acceptable.

It was the first time, when our author saw THIS. She did not know, that THIS is absolutely normal and typical. The partial or full breaking and ripping off of a horse’s leg during a race on a Russian racecourse even has its own special term. In the lingo of those fine fellows who know nothing but ride fast horses (more often referred to as “jockeys”) it is called “crushing out”. Maybe, there are other slangy jockeys’ terms, because breaking a leg during a race is so common. It is usually not discussed on the racecourses, in fact, it is forbidden. All the methods of keeping these facts a secret have already been rehearsed and put into practice perfectly.

Racecourse owners and jockeys understand very well that if the secret details of their activities become widely known - even children will spit in their faces, even those who aren’t dealing with horses and their problems at all. They will spit not figu-

NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE EQUINE ANTHOLOGY, VOL. 1

ratively, in some symbolic way, but physically, with saliva, showing their hatred and contempt. Aiming right into those dull and colourless eyes shaded by the riding hat. That’s why they’ve created the system of canvas curtains that are immediately brought and put around the dying horse, shielding from peoples’ eyes the elements of agony and the fatal injection of sodium thiopental and potassium chloride. That’s why all the vets are being paid off, and horserace photographers will take only canonical, only show photos. There is one more detail that helps horserace riders to keep the horse’s agony, the blood and torture a secret. This factor is the huge racecourse size, its distance remoteness, making the tragedies that happen not clear and invisible to spectators. This article can be considered valuable equine scientific material, because it has unique documenting photographs.

Europe. Standard racecourse. The presentation of the summer horseracing season. Of course, all of these horses are very young. Of course, they’re panicking. Their death has already started for them. Loving horse owners, following the strict and accepted horseracing practice, tie down the horses’ tongues to the lower jaw with pieces of stockings or nylon ropes. (With this idiotic practice they prevent the horse from any chance of using tongue movement to resist the painful and paralyzing action of the bit and other specific kinds of iron.)

Of course, these photos are ruthless but the racecourse reality, which tortures and kills thousands of horses, hypocritically smiling and shaking with prize cups and rugs, is even more ruthless. As it was already mentioned, because of the academic commitment of the NHE magazine I’ve seriously edited this text, leaving only several fragments that have fewer epithets and can at least be printed. Fragments of the author’s text and photos I’ve annotated with necessary comments. Author: «I had already decided to leave, when I saw one last horse, galloping on the

HORSE REVOLUTION CRUSHING OUT

And suddenly the thing, which must happen, happens. This can (and must) happen because of the enormous overloading of the horse’s organism due to the speed and panic, and also because of a tiny stumble. It is (in this particular case) the tearing of the hind limb, in the jockeys’ slang, “crushing out”.

In this photo we can see the starting phase of tearing out, the partial separation of the distal epiphysis, the partial destruction of the joint. Although, here the common digital extensor tendon is already torn, the skin and the third metacarpal bone are torn as well. The lateral collateral ligament is at the stage of tearing. The bone of the first phalanx is crushed.

NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE EQUINE ANTHOLOGY, VOL. 1

ÂŠ Lydia Nevzorova

Here we introduce to you a list of rare and ancient things which were not known to hippological history or were completely forgotten. In this cartularium there will be forgotten things and texts, which are vital for attainment of Equine History.

cartularium

CARTULARIUM BITS

III–V centuries B.C.

Bronze. Weight – 930 grams. Bronze with a sophisticated combination of metals, some distinct iron stains can be seen all over the bit. The patina is of very light colour without “malachite”. The mouthpiece is adorned with 32 raised studs and palate-cutting discs, which were characteristic of the ancient world. Unfortunately, this appliance was widely used in the time of Xenophon. The term “curb” is used as a stretch of the definition and has been used in this context for the convenience of simplifying the terminology. In essence, it is the result of ordinary bit and cheek-piece evolution into a single, rigidly fixed design whose effect is multiplied by pressure on the nasal bone produced by the upper part of the long shank. Whenever the rider pulled the reins they would tighten and clench on the nose. (This fact was verified by tests on a model.) The mouthpiece and cheek-pieces were designed with hooks (icheni), which probably served to attach the instrument to a bronze mask. Nevertheless, this application of the hooks is considered to be only one plausi-

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ble version, which has been put forward by a very reputable scholar (Ann Hyland, «The Horse in the ancient world», 2003). However, this use has been recognized by modern science as the most realistic and likely. Generally speaking, when a new type of equipment is discovered, quite a lot depends on the state of the rare object. A lot is determined by the researcher’s ability to palpate the object, to fiddle with it and test it on a model. Probably Ann Hyland did not even succeed in getting permission to photograph the bit for her original research and provided only its drawing in her book. It is not difficult to assume that no physical examination or tests have been carried out which is why the “mask” explanation should be approached with some prudence. No doubt, the object is an absolute rarity. It surfaced as the result of excavations of the temple of Artemis in the north of Greece. This sounds absolutely reasonable because the winners of sporting games or races sacrificed the bit of the winning horse to the temple in following with tradition.

colloquium

ÂŠ Lydia Nevzorova

NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE: THE HIGHEST AND MOST UNIQUE

Alexander Nevzorov’s “The Horse Encyclopedia”, is a film and a book about the horse’s main secrets, surprising generosity, intellect, its possibility to love and be a friend and also its main unhappiness - its closeness to mankind. Since being published in 2003, “The Horse Encyclopedia” has amazed and changed the world - after 30 centuries of lies, foolishness and cruelty.

NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE: THE HIGHEST AND MOST UNIQUE After several hours of video and a more than 400 page book, Alexander’s work was found to be a shattering bomb. “The Horse Encyclopedia” was not only a truthful story about so called “trust” between horses and people, “trust” which in fact is ignorance, incomprehension and man’s sadism and a horse’s pain. It was a sincere demonstration of another way. A mysterious, magical, and honest way for horse and his man. This way was found by man, who was blamed for cruelty and immorality too often, who was associated in his nationals mind with perestroika, black PR, political rowdiness, wars in Chechnya and so and so on. But not with an academic, rigorous system of horse education, full of love and patience. The world was cut into two parts. All these horse racers, sleek polo-players, begging and prophesying circus performers, aesthetic dressage riders, perpetually drunk show jumpers, crazy hire riders, mucky girls of both sexes, oligarch having nieces in equestrian sports and idiots uncomprehending that all their “trust” with horses is just fake - all of them turn out to be on one side. Alexander Nevzorov is an intellectual and charismatic gladiator. Being an ex-journalist, ex-politician, ex-chorister and ex-stuntmen, he turns out to be on the other side, alone. Along with a huge world-wide herd of horses. But soon more and more people reached through the firing line. People, who saw that in this war, neutrality may be insubstantial or, more often, mean. And a few of them would like to “be like Nevzorov”. So, one day, Alexander Nevzorov, who often said that he “educates horses, not people” became a Teacher of the most complicated and the most excellent School of horse education in the world; properly speaking, the single true School. To be frank, Nevzorov Haute Ecole, The Higher School of Alexander Nevzorov, resembles not a school, but a more like an elite secret order. It’s extremely difficult to enter it and extremely easy to be sent from it. But it’s a real wonder - to study there with only several hundred other people from all over the world, which are united with their rare gift of loving and understanding the horse. The Russians, the Ukrainians, the French, the Australians, the Americans, the Belgians, the Canadians, the Germans. There are professors, students, journalists, vets, businessman, scientists and artists. They scrutinize the works of leading vets and hippologists, and then they study the works of Chinese philosophers. Till midday they work as the stablemen for their horses, and in the afternoon they prepare the only professional hippological magazine. They spend their life in the stables, and leave only for lessons and seminars a thousand kilometers away. They learn to be invincible soldiers of the “Horse Revolution” and know very well that they will never hit or shout at their horses. They adore their horses, their Teacher, and his beautiful wife, who is a brilliant hippologist and photographer, and they hate everything which hurts horses.

NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE 68

COLLOQUIUM

– So, is your School a love or a struggle? – These things are always the same. If we didn’t love horses, we wouldn’t struggle for them so much. We just wouldn’t give a damn about all these. No love is no fighting. If the Spartans didn’t love their country, they wouldn’t die this way in Thermopylae - they would move somewhere… Really! They did not even have a city! Nowadays, when all discoveries are made, when everything is clear, “loving horses” means “hating equestrian sports”. It’s impossible to love both, as it was impossible to fight fascism and to be friends with fascist, saying, “O, they are nice guys… No, they are real fascists”! – So, equestrian sport is… – Indeed, equestrian sport isn’t a real sport. Real sport means records and victories, but records and victories, getting by on your own health and efforts, and your own sweat and blood! But equestrian sport is a rude utilization of the physical possibilities of a creature, which is absolutely inconsistent with sporting. Creatures which are forced with pain and beating. With no controlling pain, there would be no flat races, no trotting races, no circus, no dressage, no hire. All these amusements are based on a total misunderstanding of the horse, ignorance, and a lack of knowledge. These people consider horses a simple biological mechanism, which has to serve men only because it’s their duty. So, we destroy these mistakes… – Does your family help you? – My wife Lydia works no less than me, but she is clever enough not to show her achievements. She is the first, who declared rigorous war. While I fulminated and insulted everybody, she found a secret weapon called science. And this weapon is mortal. She went to college in England to study to hippology. Lydia is everything for me my love and my business partner.

69 NEVZOROV HAUTE ECOLE EQUINE ANTHOLOGY, VOL. 1

– You used to say: “I teach horses, not man”, but now you have a School. What has changed? – In fact, people complicated things for me - they are good, unfortunately. I was in a kind of academic vacuum with no connection with others, with no engagements, and I thought that I was absolutely alone. And then I realized that there are lots of people, who think like me - and I felt I had a responsibility to them. Now we nourish each other - here, in School. My students do for me no less than I do for them. Without them I would be just odious, ridiculous, exotic personage, but our School exists, and it amazes with its beauty and sincerity. It’s School which verifies my way of thinking. It’s School which confirms all our ideas. – How do you affiliate newcomers? – Firstly, I appraise degree of a person’s horse-illness. There are lots of nice, brilliant, intellectual people, but they aren’t truly horse- sick. Their horse-illness is something like a scratch or hangnail, not more, without any cerebral pathologies. I don’t want to offend them, and there are some in our School. The fact is, they will never grow into real masters of Manege Education, but they may become scientists or physicians. The will grow into successful, intellectual people, who will take part in our common affair. So, there are lots of reason to put soul and forces into them… Of course, sometimes, we are mistaken - we have a long drop-out-list. But I never regret. We study each version of human enlightenment in Russia, and clear up, that 80 of 100 are… fakes. But the other 20 are worthy of it. By the way, 20 out of 100 are considered high rates among gold diggers. – What about discipline? Do you make high demands of your students? – Discipline is just as severe as in each serious educational institution. Our

demands mobilize more intellect than is needed in other disciplines, for example, in profession of musicians or brick layer. Everything in our minds and souls goes into a big melting pot from which we train our personalities to be real masters of Manege Education. All these, Evrar de Bar, Bertran du Trembley, all 23 grandmasters of Templars, high standard of knowledge of anatomy and Qabbalah - all these works to reach turning-point, between the horse and the man. And then the horse understands its man - or not, and if not, everything is for nothing, and man has to resort to force of such savage and stupid things as bridle and beating and so on. Those, who want to communicate with the horses without these influences, have to learn to disdain their amusement, their pleasure. The great behavior was shown by the Spartans in Thermopylae. In fact, all human doing comes from their zoological basis, from their meanness, lust and self-affirmation. And in Thermopylae, their wretched primacy overcame their physiology. We have to do the same: though we would achieve the formal mutual understanding much simpler, we choose another way. Not for its difficulty or its oneness, we just can’t do it otherwise. When it becomes better not to do it at all than to do it in another way, everything will come; Sooner or later. – I s “ l a t e r ” m o re o f t e n t h a n “sooner”? – The turner studies six years, lousy violin takes a long time to study and be able to play… Do you really think that the horse is easier than the violin?! – Does it come from the bad temper of horses? – All the horses have absolute excellent character, including stallions! When I speak “character”, I mean a degree of adequacy on external influence. If somebody pats on your back