The video begins with the boy approaching the spiritual leader, before being kissed by him on the lips.
As the audience laughs and claps, the Buddhist monk sticks his tongue out and asks the child to suck it.
“Can you suck my tongue,” he says to the young boy. It happened at McLeod Ganj, a suburb of India's Dharamshala city, on February 28, shocking many across the globe.
Later, a statement on his Twitter account issued a clarification, saying, "A video clip has been circulating that shows a recent meeting when a young boy asked his Holiness the Dalai Lama if he could give him a hug."
"His Holiness wishes to apologise to the boy and his family, as well as his many friends across the world, for the hurt his words may have caused."
The statement went on to add that Dalai Lama "often teases people he meets in an innocent and playful way, even in public and before cameras. He regrets the incident."
There has not been a response from the boy's family, or the authorities, on the shocking occurrence.
During the 1959 Tibetan uprising, Lama fled to India, where he currently lives as a refugee. He has travelled the world and has spoken about the welfare of Tibetans, environment, economics, women’s rights, and nonviolence.
The spiritual leader also speaks about interfaith dialogue, physics, astronomy, Buddhism and science, cognitive neuroscience, reproductive health, and sexuality, along with various topics of Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhist teachings.
A recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 and the US Congressional Gold Medal in 2006, Time magazine named him one of the “Children of Mahatma Gandhi” and Gandhi’s spiritual heir to nonviolence.