The Dalai Lama apologized Monday, April 10, to a little boy and his family for asking him to “suck his tongue” a few weeks ago at a public hearing in which a snippet emerged on social media.
“His Holiness would like to apologize to the boy and his family, as well as his many friends around the world, for any pain his words may have caused,” read a statement posted on his official Twitter account.
The video, which sparked outrage among many netizens, was filmed on February 28, during an audience with the Dalai Lama in McLeod Ganj, a suburb of Dharamsala in northern India. In the clip, the 87-year-old Tibetan spiritual leader speaks to a child who has come to greet him on stage. He tries to kiss her on the mouth, and sticks out her tongue, right after asking her in English to “suck her tongue”, sparking hilarity from part of the audience.
“His Holiness often teases the people he meets in an innocent and playful way, even in public and in front of the cameras. [She] regrets this incident,” the statement read. In 2019, the Dalai Lama had already issued a public apology for saying that if a woman were to succeed him, she would have to be “attractive”. These remarks, made during an interview on the BBC, had also caused controversy.