13 monks earn top degree in Tibetan Buddhism

Thirteen monks passed the annual dharma debating exam and were accredited as Geshe Lharampas — the highest academic degree of Tibetan Buddhism — on Sunday at Jokhang Temple in Lhasa, Tibet autonomous region.

According to tradition, after a grand religious ceremony the monk candidates sat patiently as they waited to defend their understanding of the Five Great Volumes of Tibetan Buddhism, against challenges from a handful of top scholars.

The examiners, a board of master scholars, stood in the middle of the courtyard ready to challenge one of the candidates, who sat on raised podiums.