Spiritual leader Dalai Lama has apologized for his hot take about the possible chance of a female successor taking his place.
In an exclusive interview with the BBC, the 14th Dalai Lama shared his thoughts about Trump’s moral compass, or a lack thereof. But while everyone reasonable enough can agree with him, his off comments about women is what spread on the internet like wildfire.
In the interview, the Buddhist leader said that a female Dalai Lama will have to be “attractive”. Otherwise, people will not want to “see that face”.
Now, the Tibetan spiritual leader has released an apology through his office suggesting that his remarks were nothing more than a joke.
“He is deeply sorry that people have been hurt by what he said and offers his sincere apologies,” the statement said. The statement claimed that the Dalai Lama “has a keen sense of the contradictions between the materialistic, globalized world he encounters on his travels and the complex, more esoteric ideas about reincarnation that are at the heart of Tibetan Buddhist tradition.”
“However, it sometimes happens that off the cuff remarks, which might be amusing in one cultural context, lose their humour in translation when brought into another. He regrets any offence that may have been given.”
In the interview was reaffirming a statement that he said before as brought about by the interviewer. And while the interviewer asked if it was more about the ‘inside’ that the outward appearance, Dalai Lama says “Yes, I think both.”