A school of high endeavor

"I'm glad to further my Buddhism studies at the professional institute. As teachers are from the different sects of Tibetan Buddhism, students can get all sorts of knowledge from them rather than focusing on one's own sect," says Chongdrub Kelsang Tuwang.

The 29-year-old is studying there after passing an entrance exam in 2020 for a four-year program, which is similar to college education.

After graduating from the institute, he can apply for a higher-level education, which is like postgraduate studies.

Before that, he studied Buddhism at a monastery in Nagchu city in Xizang.

He says he hopes the public will know about the daily life of monks and nuns at the institute.

He gets up at 6 am, does his revision and prepares lessons before morning class that starts at 9:30 am.

"I'm interested in philosophy and prajna (transcendental wisdom in Buddhism), which are often used in sutra debate," Chongdrub Kelsang Tuwang says.

"At night, I debate with classmates to review what we've learned in the daytime or go to evening self-study class."

It's a tradition for Tibetan Buddhist monks and nuns to debate in a courtyard of their monastery, discussing the philosophy and prajna of the Buddhist scriptures.