Webinar - an Introduction to Heat That Listens

Date: 2025-10-14, 22:00
Organizer : Lithuanian Bath Academy

Warmly welcome to our webinar -  learning space for those preparing or has already been in the “Wild Bathing: A Celebration & Ritual” seminar, and for anyone curious about the deeper meaning of sauna.

This is not simply an introduction, but an educational journey into the Lithuanian pirtis tradition. Together we will explore how the sauna is much more than a “hot box.” It is a carefully crafted microclimate, shaped by fire, stones, water, and air—designed to support the body, calm the emotions, and open the mind.

By reconnecting with these traditions, we begin to see the sauna not just as a place to sweat, but as a cultural practice of care, belonging, and dialogue with nature.

The Soul of Sauna – A Heat That Listens

• We introduce sauna as a conversation between fire and water, a climate that listens rather than overwhelms. This is the foundation of a sauna that restores and nourishes.
• Through the Four Elements—Air, Fire, Water, and Earth—we frame the ritual journey participants will experience. Each element helps us tune into our surroundings, our senses, and our inner balance.
• We also explore why people have always sought shelter and warmth. From ancient hearths to sacred dwellings, warmth was never just survival—it was safety, rest, and renewal. A true sauna carries this same archetypal power: a womb-like space where we return to ourselves.

The Craft of Steam – The Feeling of Heat

• We connect philosophy to practice. Lithuanian sauna tradition teaches how to create the kind of soft, living heat that makes a sauna transformative.
• We uncover the secrets of steam—why it feels so hot and alive, how stones and water create a heat that wraps the body, and why the quality of steam matters more than the number on a thermometer.
• We also look at how heat and steam move inside the sauna, creating an invisible “pocket” where the climate is most balanced. This is where the body can truly rest, breathe, and receive the benefits of the ritual.

From Baltic Forests to Atlantic Shores – Theory in Practice

The principles shared in the webinar come alive during the one-day seminar on the coast.

 Wild Bathing: A Celebration & Ritual

• You will step into celebration. Guided by the Four Elements, the day unfolds as a living ritual. The highlight is the “Fire & Water Wedding,” when red-hot stones meet water, releasing a dialogue of heat and steam that is both practical and profoundly symbolic.

Q&A

We finish by gathering our insights and opening space for your questions. 

Bath masters, teachers, authors of the book „Pirtis“ Rimas Kavaliauskas, and Birutė Masiliauskienė.