Meet Dashu, or Major Heat, the scorching peak of summer on traditional Chinese calendar, which falls on July 23 this year.

It's one of the 24 solar terms, an ancient Chinese system of time and practices developed through observation of the sun's annual motion, which divided the year into 24 equal segments. For centuries, farmers and families across China have used it to plan planting, harvests and daily life. Inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2016, this ancient wisdom is more than just an old tradition – it's still shaping how people live today.

But long before Dashu had a place on that list, people still had to live through it. No air conditioning. No fridge stocked with ice-cold drinks. And yet, for thousands of years, people found ways to beat the heat.

So... how'd they do it? Let's find some clues in traditional Chinese paintings.

A bowl of iced fruit. Fresh lotus root, sliced and cool. A painted screen for your mind to wander into.

A bamboo grove. A stream running clear. A pond bursting with lotus flowers. And a heart in no rush at all, happy to let the summer wander off on its own time.

They weren't just cooling people's bodies. They were cooling their minds.

Maybe real coolness is never about the temperature.