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The Dalai Lama, the Tibetan spiritual leader, apologized on Monday after a video surfaced online showing him kissing a boy on the lips at a public event earlier this year and then saying to the child, “Suck my tongue.”

In the video, which was taken in February in the hill town of Dharamsala, in northern India, the Buddhist leader, 87, speaks briefly to the boy in front of an audience before kissing him and then pulling him close to his outstretched tongue.

The apology issued by the Dalai Lama’s office said only that the boy, who was not identified, had asked the spiritual leader if he could give him a hug, making no reference to the kiss or the extended tongue. It said that the Dalai Lama’s actions had been lighthearted.

“His Holiness often teases people he meets in an innocent and playful way, even in public and before cameras. He regrets the incident,” his office said, adding that the Dalai Lama wished to apologize “for the hurt his words may have caused.”

Tseten Samdup Chhoekyapa, an official in the Dalai Lama’s office in Dharamsala, did not answer calls seeking additional comment.

Tenzin Gyatso, also known as the 14th Dalai Lama, fled Tibet for India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule. In India, he was allowed to set up a government-in-exile in Dharamsala, and at 54 years old he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989. He is expected to announce his successor when he turns 90.

In the video online, the boy stands in the audience before the Dalai Lama and says into a microphone, “Can I hug you?” As the boy approaches him, the Dalai Lama points to his cheek and says “first here.” The boy gives him a kiss and then embraces the Dalai Lama, smiling widely.

Then the Dalai Lama points to his own lips and says, “Then I think finally here also.” He pulls the boy’s chin and kisses him on the mouth, to laughter and applause from the audience. Seconds later, the leader says “and suck my tongue,” poking his tongue out and resting his forehead against the boy’s.