Horrified caller disgusted at Dalai Lama being labelled as a 'predator' after asking boy to 'suck tongue'
11 April 2023, 12:59
This caller is horrified at Dalai Lama being labelled as a ‘predator’
Caller Marion defends his actions by telling Nick Ferrari the religious leader lives in a different "spiritual dimension".
Nick Ferrari at Breakfast on LBC disputed caller Marion's mitigation of the incident, claiming the spiritual leader "knows how the western world operates", brandishing the act "perverted".
The Dalai Lama apologised after the footage which showed him telling a boy to suck his tongue went viral on the internet.
The incident appears to have taken place at the Dalai Lama's temple in Dharamshala on 28 February.
In the video, the boy is seen asking if he can hug the Dalai Lama. The leader motions to his cheek, saying "first here" and the boy kisses his cheek and gives him a hug.
Then, while holding the boy's hand, the Dalai Lama motions to his lips and says "I think here also", and kisses the boy on the lips.
The leader then puts his forehead to the boy's, before sticking out his tongue, saying "and suck my tongue".
As some people laugh, the boy sticks his tongue out before withdrawing a little, as does the Dalai Lama.
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Defending the Dalai Lama's actions, caller Marion said: “The Dalai Lama lives in a spiritual dimension that you and I just can’t imagine.
“His entire life has been lived in a completely different plane than ours”.
Disagreeing with Marion's viewpoint Nick continued by saying: "He is a global figure, he travels the world, he’s known to and has every right to mix with royalty and Hollywood stars, and show business celebrities, he is very much au fait with the western world, it's not as if he’s suddenly been discovered living in upper woop woop".
Pursuing her justification of the spiritual leader's actions, Marion said: “He was chosen to be Dalai Lama from a very young age, he would have absolutely no idea that this would be seen in the wrong way".
Sticking one's tongue out can be a form of greeting in Tibetan culture.
The incident is not the first occasion where the leader has been forced to apologise. In 2019, the Dalai Lama's office apologised after the spiritual leader told the BBC in an interview that any future female Dalai Lama should be "attractive".
