The Dalai Lama has issued an apology after a video surfaced in which he is seen kissing a child on the lips and asking the child to "suck my tongue" during an event in Dharamshala, India. In a statement released on Monday, the Dalai Lama's office expressed his regret over the incident and apologized to the boy, his family, and friends worldwide for any hurt his words may have caused.
The statement explained that the Dalai Lama frequently engages with people he meets in an innocent and playful manner, even in public and before cameras. The video, which was recorded in February, went viral on social media, leading to widespread criticism of the spiritual leader's actions.
In the video, the young boy asks the Nobel Peace Prize laureate, "Can I hug you?" The 87-year-old Dalai Lama invites the child on stage and indicates his cheek, prompting the boy to hug and kiss him. The spiritual leader then points to his lips and says, "then I think finally here also," before kissing the boy on the mouth and asking him to "suck my tongue."
The identity of the boy remains unknown, but he was present at an event hosted by the M3M Foundation, the philanthropic division of the Indian real estate company M3M Group. CNN has reached out to the M3M Foundation for comment.
In reaction to the incident, the Delhi-based child rights organization Haq: Center for Child Rights condemned "all forms of child abuse" in a statement to CNN. The group also dismissed suggestions that the video depicted a Tibetan cultural expression, saying that even if it were, such expressions are not acceptable.
Tenzin Gyatso, the current Dalai Lama, is the best-known living Buddhist figure globally and serves as the primary spiritual leader of the "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism. He has been based in India since 1959 after an unsuccessful Tibetan uprising against Chinese occupation forces. He subsequently established a government-in-exile in the northern Indian city of Dharamshala.
The incident in February is not the first time the Dalai Lama has sparked controversy. In 2019, he apologized following a BBC interview in which he stated that a female Dalai Lama should be more attractive. In 2018, he made comments suggesting that Europe should be kept for Europeans when discussing the influx of African refugees into the continent.
