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LAME DEER, Mont.-With methods as old as time, he talks with horses, without saying a word he communicates with their spirit.

Phillip Whiteman, Jr. a Northern Cheyenne Indian from Lame Deer, Montana comes from a strong traditional and spiritual background.

As well as a National Presenter, Performer and Traditional Storyteller, he is an Indian World Champion and PRCA Saddle Bronc Rider, and renowned horseman. His father, grandfather, and ancestors have all been horsemen and have passed down to him knowledge of horses.

With Whiteman's strong understanding of his culture and traditions, his connection to horses, and his gift of communicating with people, he developed the "Medicine Wheel Model to Natural Horsemanship", a Native American approach to working with and training horses. Long before the horse whisperers of today, Plains Indians have long been known for their master horsemanship abilities.

The Medicine Wheel Model is simplistic, it is based on the premise that everything is part of a circle; within that circle all things are equal, including horse and human. This is why Whiteman does not believe in the prey and predator approach to working with horses. He teaches that everything is one, everything has a spirit, even horses and you must interact with their spirit in a non-threatening and non-confrontational manner.

According to Whiteman, The Medicine Wheel teaches us that within the circle there are four quadrants which represent the four directions, the four seasons, the four colors of men, the animals that come from the land, water, sky and below the earth, and the four stages of life we go through. Whiteman believes the horse too, has four dimensions.

"Most people that understand horses believe that horses have an off side" Whiteman states, "but I don't believe this, I believe that horses have four sides to them."

According to Whiteman the four sides include the child side, the adolescent, the adult, and the grandparent side. Within each of these sides come behaviors that the horse displays depending on which side you are working with. The horse has a center, which creates balance and represents the center of the Medicine Wheel.

"Society teaches us that we have to dominate, and overpower the horse to teach it," Phillip states "but my traditions and culture, and my understanding of the horse teach me that by working with the horse's spirit, and believing that we are one, the horse will do what I ask of it". According to Whiteman, horses are a mirror to us how we work with them, is how they will work with us. If we are stressed, tense and confrontational that is what our horse will mirror back at us.

"We still have a lot to learn from nature, and animals. Horses have super senses and extraordinary powers, with the Medicine Wheel approach you are exposed to unlimited interaction and understanding of the horse" Whiteman states, and this is why he uses the mirror reflection and does not use the prey and predator approach. "Such approaches of inferiority and superiority can damage the spirits of horses and people". Consistency and patience are key when working with horses. This is what the Medicine Wheel Model to Natural Horsemanship is all about, according to Whiteman.

Whiteman travels throughout the country holding clinics teaching the Medicine Wheel Model. He gives private lessons and trains a limited number of outside horses. He also holds Medicine Wheel Model camps in the summer in Lame Deer, which are more in-depth

Whiteman takes camp participants to significant cultural sites where they can visibly see proof of the Medicine Wheel. At the camps he shares what he is allowed to of his culture so that participants can gain a better understanding of the Medicine Wheel Model.

Special guests are invited to share their horsemanship skills and knowledge. Camp participants are given the opportunity to stay in tepees on site; the evenings are filled with trail rides in the beautiful hills of Lame Deer, guitar picking, Indian and Cowboy stories and games. According to Whiteman, horses have the power to heal and at the Medicine Wheel Model to Natural Horsemanship Camp you can learn more about the healing powers of the horse and how it helped Native Americans.

The dates for this years camps are June 11-12, June 18-19, July 16-17 and September 17-18, 2005. For more information you can call (406)477-8720 or write PO Box 1138 Lame Deer, MT. 59043, e-mail spiritseeker@rangeweb.net.