Harmony - The Path to Balance with Mary Seefried

What does it truly mean to ride in harmony, not only in how it looks, but in how it feels for both horse and rider? In this second conversation with Mary Seefried, Pernille explores harmony as something far deeper than a quality we suddenly create in the saddle. It begins within the rider, in the way we bring together our thoughts, emotions, body, energy and intention before we even place a foot in the stirrup. Together, they consider the relationship between harmony and balance. While balance is often spoken of as the aim of dressage, it is never a fixed or static point. It is alive, continually shifting and asking to be felt and rediscovered from one moment to the next. Could harmony, then, be the path that leads us towards balance, the ongoing process of bringing all the individual elements into relationship with one another? And when those elements begin to harmonise, is this where balance, beauty and grace can emerge? Drawing upon Mary's decades of experience as an FEI 5-star judge, educator, mentor and highly respected international official, the conversation explores what takes a horse-and-rider partnership beyond technical correctness and into that elusive place of true harmony. Mary also shares her reflections after returning from the FEI World Championships in Aachen, where she served on the Dressage Judges' Supervisory Panel. From this unique position, she observed dressage at its very highest level and offers her perspective on how the horses, riders and the sport itself continue to evolve. This conversation invites us to consider whether becoming a better rider for the horse begins not only with improving our technique, but with looking more deeply within ourselves, and whether the harmony we cultivate in the saddle may ultimately flow into every other part of our lives. **Resources:** Connect with Mary: https://www.gg.gov.au/australian-honours-and-awardsorder-australiarecipient-profiles/mary-seefried-am Connect with Mary on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mary-seefried-3a011a70/ Connect with us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rramossport Follow along on the journey: https://www.pernillehogg.com/podcast Music produced by Melissa Parris