The Dalai Lama will visit three Scottish cities this summer, it has been announced.
He will speak at events in Dundee, Edinburgh and Inverness between June 21 and 24 as part of a wider UK visit.
Confirmation of the trip came six years after initial invitations to visit the three cities.
He will spend three days north of the border during his visit to the UK, which takes him to Manchester and London from June 16.
While in Edinburgh on Friday June 22, he will attend a private viewing of archived Tibetan material at the National Library of Scotland before delivering a talk entitled Beyond Religion: Ethics for a Whole World at the Usher Hall.
Pipe bands and members of the public will greet him as he arrives in Dundee before he delivers The Margaret Harris Lecture on Religion at the Caird Hall on the request of the University of Dundee.
The final day of his Scottish tour will see the Dalai Lama travel to the capital of the Highlands where he will give a speech titled ‘Be the Change’ at Eden Court Theatre.
The 14th Dalai Lama was originally asked to come to Scotland in 2006 by The Conference of Edinburgh’s Religious Leaders, The Edinburgh Inter Faith Association, The University of Dundee, Dundee City Council, The City of Edinburgh, Highland Council, and The National Library of Scotland.
Rabbi David Rose, co-convener of The Edinburgh Inter Faith Association and Co-Chair of The Conference of Edinburgh’s Religious Leaders said: “We are again delighted to welcome the Dalai Lama to Edinburgh and Scotland.
“As a beacon of tolerance, commonsense and morality in our world, this pre-eminent religious leader does us a great honour in again gracing our city.
“The diverse faiths of the city eagerly await his presence and his inspirational words.”
Mr Thubten Samdup, representative of HH the Dalai Lama and UK Visit Co-ordinator, said: “This visit will be an opportunity for people across the UK to hear the message of this globally recognised spiritual and moral authority.
“His Holiness the Dalai Lama has called for this to be a ‘century of dialogue and peace', urging youth to ‘be the change they wish to see in the world’.
“In particular, his message will encourage youth across the UK to seriously consider their unique potential as decisive catalysts for peace, able to bring to reality the better world they hope to inhabit.”
Education has been placed at the forefront of his trip to Scotland with school pupils at each of the public talks given the opportunity to ask questions.
