Dalai Lama: Marriage Equality Is 'OK'

The Dalai Lama for the first time addressed same-sex marriage directly, calling it "OK" and an "individual's business" during an interview last week.

While the Dalai Lama has continued (as recently as last month) to call gay sex a form of "misconduct" for Buddhists but not for others, who should "follow one's own teachings," he was pressed on marriage equality in an interview last week on Larry King Now. The 78-year-old Buddhist spiritual leader said nonbelievers should be free to engage in any kind of sexual activity they desired "so long as it's safe" and "fully agreed" upon.

He also condemned bullying and abuse. "That is wrong," he said. "That's a violation of human rights."

Ultimately, the Dalai Lama said that same-sex couples should be free to marry where it is legally permissible. "That's up to the country's law," he told King. "I think [marriage equality is] OK. I think that's an individual's business. If two people ... really feel that way, it's more practical, satisfaction, and both sides fully agree, then OK."

Previously, during his trip to the United States, the Dalai Lama has said that consensual sex among two people of the same gender is permissible for non-Buddhists.

Watch the video below.