Por si a alguien le interesa, es un comentario de alguien Tibetano, su interpretación sobre el tema, para mí bastante revelador:
Some potentially helpful context for those struggling with the Dalai Lama story
From a Tibetan on Instagram:
To my dear non-Tibetan friends who wanted my thoughts on the recent Dalai Lama episode:
I want to preface this by saying that I viewed and processed this incident as someone steeped in the cultures of both source language and target language. That is to say, I am familiar with the Tibetan format of humor (often dark) and acknowledge how different jokes can sound in English without proper context.
As is the case with most Tibetan elders, the Dalai Lama has a tendency to tease children and displays a certain childlike innocence. Bearing in mind that he has a rather poor command of the English language, and with his advanced age adding to his struggle in articulating his thoughts into words, I think it all came down to the word "SUCK," which naturally translates to obscenity in the English-speaking world, especially in today hyper sexualized world.
What the Dalai Lama said in English translates to "ngé ché lé jip" in Tibetan. Tibetan parents and grandparents often tease their children by holding them tight and saying these words, sticking out the tip of their tongue almost touching the face, knowing well that the kids don't like it and expect them to break their grip (for Tibetans unable to relate to these experiences, I am sorry). There is nothing obscene from this cultural perspective.
Culture gives language different contexts. Deeply-held taboos in one culture can be normal in another. Parents kissing children on the lips is one example. Where such a gesture nowadays can mean a death sentence in certain parts of the world, it is viewed as an act of affection elsewhere.
And from Shelly Bhoil, an Indian Tibetologist working in Brazil:
Sticking your tongue out is a way of greeting and showing respect in Tibetan culture and also for playful laughter among children. Given that the Dalai Lama struggles with English, his use of the word 'suck' is also a mistranslation of what he'd meant to say: probably see my tongue, implying it's not black and not evil. If you see the complete video, you'll see the DL struggling to understand the meaning of the word 'hug' when the child asks him if he could hug him. And even in the video that is being used to vilify the Dalai Lama, you will notice how he takes a long pause searching for the English equivalent of probably the word 'see' before mistranslating it as 'suck'.
Finally, let's use common sense, if this was a bad gesture in Tibetan community with sexual connotation, the Tibetan editor of VoA wouldn't have uploaded the video. So what we have here is gross misunderstanding between cultures, hyped by media. It's not the Dalai Lama but media caught in the act of vulgar journalism becuase they don't check out the facts before passing a judgement. How this news hurts the sentiment of millions of Tibetans, for whom His Holiness is the pivot of their civilization, is beyond words. TOI owes an immediate apology to the Dalai Lama and his people.