The Dalai Lama is apologizing after a video showed him asking a young boy to "suck my tongue" during an event in February. The event took place in Northern India.
The young boy had asked Tenzin Gyatso, the current Dalai Lama, for a hug before being invited on stage.
In the video, the Dalai Lama is seen sticking his tongue out in the boy's face as they press their foreheads together, according to a clip shared by the Daily Mail. Prior to sticking his tongue out, the spiritual leader asked the boy to kiss him on the cheek and pointed to his lips.
According to CNN, the 87-year-old's office released a statement that said he "regrets" his behavior and apologizes.
"His Holiness wishes to apologise to the boy and his family, as well as his many friends across the world, for the hurt his words may have caused," the statement read, according to Reuters.
“His Holiness often teases people he meets in an innocent and playful way, even in public and before cameras,” the statement read.
The boy's identity has not been released.
In 2019, Gyatso apologized for a BBC interview where he said if a female Dalai Lama succeeded him she "should be more attractive." In a separate incident, he said that Europe should only be for Europeans when discussing African refugees and Muslims.
The spiritual leader has been considered a dangerous separatist by Beijing and currently lives in a compound in Dharamshala, a town in northern India.
