"A human being is a part of the whole called by us "universe," a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty."
Albert Einstein

Perhaps it is this "optical delusion" of seperatness that makes riding so special and so unique as through riding and the horse, we access new connections to another living creature and through him begin to touch upon the conciousness of "whole of nature".