Botanical gardens have played a vital role throughout history in the communication and exchange not only of ideas and concepts but also of plants and knowledge. The Botanical Garden of Padua, created in 1545, is the world’s first and oldest surviving university botanical representing the birth of botanical science, scientific exchanges, and understanding of the relationship between nature and culture.

Breathwork is a potent ally for lung health. By expanding lung capacity and optimizing oxygen exchange, intentional breathing revitalises respiratory function. This practice not only clears stagnation but also promotes a calm mind, establishing a harmonious connection between body and mind. Each deliberate inhale and exhale becomes a transformative rhythm, nurturing overall lung well-being.

This meditation uses the names from Chinese medicine for the ‘spirits’ of the energy systems of our major organs – the Lung Spirit is the Po, the Liver spirit is the Hun, the Spleen spirit is the Yi, the Kidney Spirit is the Zhi, and the Heart spirit is the Shen. Altogether they are considered to make up our greater Shen, which could be aligned with ideas of spirit, soul, and wider consciousness.