While Breathwork is a component of most meditations, it becomes its own practice when we use non-cyclic techniques like box breathing or Tummo Breathwork. This means that the breath is the star of the show, instead of a tool used to meditate.

It's unknown why these huge libraries of breathing techniques from ancient India, China, and other regions went dormant for centuries. One reason for the increase in the West is thanks to the Covid epidemic, which both made us more aware of our breathing (it was a respiratory illness, plus it made us spend time indoors and wear masks) and prompted the US Government to dedicate hundreds of millions of dollars towards researching breathing techniques and their impact on things like stress, focus, and immunity.