The Dalai Lama came under fire after a video showing him kissing a child on the lips and telling him to "suck my tongue" surfaced online Monday.
A statement posted on his official website said regretted the incident and wished 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.”
Robby Starbuck, a U.S.-based director/producer, said: "The Dalai Lama asked a little boy to suck his tongue and not one mainstream news outlet is asking what the heck is going on here. This is pedophilic, abusive and totally sick."
"You didn't just hug the boy though, you asked him to 'suck your tongue.' Why leave that bit out?" Sameera Khan, one Twitter user, responded to the Dalai Lama's statement.
Twitter users slammed the video, calling it "disgusting" and "absolutely sick" after it started trending on Sunday.
"Utterly shocked to see this display by the #DalaiLama. In the past too, he's had to apologize for his sexist comments. But saying – Now suck my tongue to a small boy is disgusting," wrote user Sangita.
Another poster, Rakhi Tripathi, said: "What did I just see? What that child must be feeling? Disgusting."
The incident occurred at a public gathering in February at the Tsuglakhang temple in Dharamsala, where the exiled leader lives. He was taking questions from the audience when the boy asked if he could hug him.
The Dalai Lama invited the boy up toward the platform he was seated on. In the video, he gestured to his cheek, after which the child kissed him before giving him a hug.
The Dalai Lama then asked the boy to kiss him on the lips and stuck out his tongue. “And suck my tongue,” the Dalai Lama can be heard saying as the boy sticks out his own tongue and leans in, prompting laughter from the audience.
The footage triggered a backlash online with social media users condemning his behavior as inappropriate and disturbing.
“His Holiness often teases people he meets in an innocent and playful way, even in public and before cameras,” the statement from the Dalai Lama read.
The Dalai Lama has made the hillside town of Dharmsala his headquarters since fleeing from Tibet after a failed uprising against Chinese rule in 1959. India considers Tibet to be part of China, though it hosts Tibetan exiles.
