The Sera Monastery, fully named the Sera Monastery of Big Vehicle, is located at Mt. Wuze in the northern suburb of Lhasa, capital of southwest China’s Tibet Autonomous Region. Sera means "hailstones" in Tibetan language, but most people would give it a more romantic interpretation-"wild rosebush". The monastery, built in 1419 by a disciple of Tsongkapa, founder of the Gelug Sect of Tibetan Buddhism, is one of the six great monasteries of its sect in Tibet. The place is famous for its Buddhism scripture debating. Monks can be seen preparing for monastic exams by staging hot debates according to Tibetan Buddhism rituals. [Photo/China Tibet Online]

The Sera Monastery, fully named the Sera Monastery of Big Vehicle, is located at Mt. Wuze in the northern suburb of Lhasa, capital of southwest China’s Tibet Autonomous Region. Sera means "hailstones" in Tibetan language, but most people would give it a more romantic interpretation-"wild rosebush". The monastery, built in 1419 by a disciple of Tsongkapa, founder of the Gelug Sect of Tibetan Buddhism, is one of the six great monasteries of its sect in Tibet. The place is famous for its Buddhism scripture debating. Monks can be seen preparing for monastic exams by staging hot debates according to Tibetan Buddhism rituals. [Photo/China Tibet Online]

The Sera Monastery, fully named the Sera Monastery of Big Vehicle, is located at Mt. Wuze in the northern suburb of Lhasa, capital of southwest China’s Tibet Autonomous Region. Sera means "hailstones" in Tibetan language, but most people would give it a more romantic interpretation-"wild rosebush". The monastery, built in 1419 by a disciple of Tsongkapa, founder of the Gelug Sect of Tibetan Buddhism, is one of the six great monasteries of its sect in Tibet. The place is famous for its Buddhism scripture debating. Monks can be seen preparing for monastic exams by staging hot debates according to Tibetan Buddhism rituals. [Photo/China Tibet Online]