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| Ansata Delilah (Ansata Shah Zaman x *Ansata Bint Misr) |
"For my Dahma carries me to the realms accessible to none other." - Shahwan, as written and included within Authentic Arabian Bloodstock Volume II, by Judith Forbis
In his earlier written work, published in Western Horseman magazine, Carl Raswan wrote of the psychic powers that Bedouins believed were bestowed, mare-to-mare, since the very first mare, the special mare, the wild mare of Arabia or as she is known by a holier name - Ishmael's mare. Raswan explained, "The gift of an intelligent spirit was bestowed upon the mare of Ishmael and an intuitive soul to dwell within her beautiful, strong and symmetrical body. Psychic powers of her animal spirit were gifts of God, but her conscious mind developed through her intimate human association."
Judith Forbis wrote something about Ansata Delilah within the second volume of Authentic Arabian Bloodstock, which caught my attention, as it reminded me of what I had read recently concerning the Muluq horses and their ability to think, reason and meditate upon the unseen. Judi wrote, "an independent soul marked Delilah from the day she was born. Standing in the pasture apart from her mother, she would look off into the distance at something sensed but not seen." If lightning would strike me during a rainstorm, it would not have any more power than the impact that this sentence had upon me.
You will remember that the Bedouins called this trait, Yuminuna Bi'l Ghayb, translated to mean: it is within them - the psychic power of an angel. Carl Raswan believed that our modern ways of equine husbandry, focused only upon their physical forms and animal minds, has prevented us from engaging in an intimate connection with these creatures and dulled our senses, so that we no longer communicated or even, understood their souls. Carl Raswan further writes, " the most perfect of Arabians then are the 'Muluq' (the Angel) Horses, who are not only physically the most beautiful and perfect, but who have one more feature, which is revealed in the "windows" (or mirrors) of their handsome heads: an expression in their eyes which proves that they are "thinking" (meditating), rational beings with a soul and not just subject creatures to serve us physically." Carl Raswan also learned that the Muluq horses, intellectually enlightened beings as they were, belonged to a spiritual assembly of animals called "wisal", unique creatures who knew God intimately and are very aware of God's presence. Raswan believed that these horses were quieter than most horses, often spending their time listening and meditating, giving the onlooker an impression of being deep in thought. Their charm, so entwined with the mystery of who they really are, is electric, affecting our senses, as no other horse can. Their touch is magnetic and even their fragrance is different from other horses. I found it really interesting that Ansata Sudarra, Delilah's daughter by Ansata Abu Sudan, was an independent soul, like her mother. It lends credibility to what Raswan has written, of how this psychic power is primarily transmitted - from mare-to-mare. Raswan says that stallions could possibly possess this psychic power, however, a stallion can never pass it onto his get, "AN ARABIAN sire communicates physical qualities and nervous energies, but never the elements of the mind and soul which are outside of the domain of physical laws and which were a spiritual gift to the first mare." In Judith Forbis' very popular new book, Ansata Hejazi: Born to Rule, she writes of the unique qualities that made Ansata Hejazi not only a charismatic and beloved stallion but truly special, in a most extraordinary way. Now, I wonder if these horses - mother, daughter and grandson are further proof of Raswan's psychic theories, possessing the qualities that Carl Raswan wrote about, so very long ago.
If what Carl Raswan wrote about the psychic and spiritual gifts bestowed upon these horses is truthful, then the way in which we measure these horses and the qualities that we have held dear for so many years, pale in comparison to who these horses really are and the significance they hold for our lives, that is, their ability to shepherd us towards our Creator and our celestial home.
***this blog is lovingly dedicated to Judith Forbis with much gratitude, for the significant impact she has made upon my life, through the Egyptian Arabian horse.***
Spiritual gift of horses, indeed. Thank you for posting this. I need to share something with you. Some years back I befriended an American who became a nun after being cured of cancer. She came to Israel to an order serving at the Russian Orthodox Church in Jerusalem and rose to a very important position within the church and we met when that order purchased a milking goat from our small herd (Her doctor prescribed that she eat cheeses and dairy products made from goat milk). We visited them a few times to teach them dairying skills.
ReplyDeleteWe are located close to the route that the nuns would use to take foreign visitors to pilgrimage sites in Galilee and our friend soon made it a habit of visiting our farm with important Church guests on their way to or from Israel's north. We would visit with tea and refreshments and they would enjoy seeing our horses.
Our horses were absolutely fascinated with these visitors; they would stand almost at attention in their stalls and kick with their front feet, impatient to be close to and touched by these spiritual souls and jealous if a neighboring horse got more than his/her share. They would muzzle them all over and push against them as much as possible....the entire stalled herd. I would watch them stretching their necks, trying to touch these spiritual pilgrims. It was beautiful and strange and gave me goosebumps and this scene repeated itself every time our friend visited. Each time, most of the visitors with her were there for the first time; only a few representatives of the nun's order accompanied them.
I am convinced that the horses were attracted by the spirituality of these guests and the inner peace them displayed simply couldn't get enough of them.
Over several years the visits tapered and waned and after the American nun passed on, they stopped completely and we lost touch with the order, but I will never forget what we witnessed on their visits.