The Dalai Lama Is Criticized for Asking a Young Child To Suck His Tongue After Kissing Him

A young child and the Dalai Lama. Photo/New York Post

Tibet's Dalai Lama is being heavily criticized for a video that's surfaced of him kissing a young boy in the mouth, then asking him to suck his tongue at an event in India. The event was reportedly held in February.

CNN described the encounter between the child and the Dalai Lama as follows: "The 87-year-old spiritual leader invites the boy on stage and points to his cheek and says, "first here," prompting the boy to give him a hug and a kiss. The Dalai Lama then points to his lips, and says: "then I think finally here also." He then pulls the boy's chin and kisses him on the mouth. "And suck my tongue," he says after a few seconds, poking his tongue out.

According to CNN, the office of the Dalai Lama gave the following statement, "he wishes to apologize to the boy and his family, as well as his many friends across the world, for the hurt his words may have caused;" he regrets the incident. According to the spiritual leader's office, "His Holiness often teases people he meets in an innocent and playful way, even in public and before cameras." The current religious leader is the 14th Dalai Lama, who is known to Tibet citizens as Gyalwa Rinpoche. He's also Tibet's head of state. He's governed the region of China since 1940.