Not familiar with Miksang Photography? Check out the Miksang Society for Contemplative Photography. Miksang is a tibetan word meaning “good eye,” or as I’ve heard others define it, “good seeing.” As such, it is a mindful approach to photography — one connected to the teachings of Chögyam Trungpa, founder of Naropa University, and the Shambhala disposition. Trungpa remains a controversial figure, not because of his teachings per se, but because his own life was pretty conflicted. Still, Miksang Photography is an approach to photography that is contemplative and focuses on spontaneity, on the flash of recognition of the moment when mind and visual perception come together.
I am not a practitioner of Miksang in a formal sense. In other words, I am neither a follower of Tibetan Buddhism, nor have I been trained in Shambhala method. Moreover, I am far more eclectic in my approach to photography and mindfulness (I call myself a Zen Humanist, see my post on that, and friendly to the secular Shambhala thought). But, to the extent that we practice being present, feeling interconnected with what is, in the present moment, and seeing photography as an extension and expression of the flow of being of that moment, then we are could be said to be practicing Miksang.
Miksang is essentially about learning to look deeply. You don’t need to be Buddhist, of any stripe, in order to practice Miksang. Their approach to perception, looking deeply and learning to recognize what is, what is present, and what we might open to when the layers of sedimentation and perceptual clutter and baggage are lifted, is helpful.
Want to deepen your thinking about space, flow of being, perception, etc? Read a bit of Henri Bergson!
