Dalai Lama accepts first Grammy, after beating out host Trevor Noah

Yahoo News - The Dalai Lama is now a Grammy winner, beating out Grammy Awards host Trevor Noah for the coveted award on Sunday, Feb. 1.

The Tibetan spiritual leader, 90, took the Grammy for best audio book, narration and storytelling recording for "Meditations: The Reflections Of His Holiness The Dalai Lama" at the 68th Grammys pre-ceremony. He joined fellow Grammy winner, director Steven Spielberg, in the first-time winner's honors.

Musician Rufus Wainwright accepted the award on the Dalai Lama's behalf during the ceremony that streamed on YouTube.

"OK, I am not the Dalai Lama, obviously," Rufus Wainwright joked from the podium. "It was a privilege to participate in this project. It's an honor to accept this recognition on behalf of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, whose wisdom is at the heart of this work."

The Dalai Lama accepted the win on his official Instagram account, writing that he was "grateful" for the Grammy win and that it would help spread his message.

"I receive this recognition with gratitude and humility," he wrote. "I don't see it as something personal, but as a recognition of our shared universal responsibility. I truly believe that peace, compassion, care for our environment, and an understanding of the oneness of humanity are essential for the collective responsibility for all eight billion human beings."

The Dalai Lama had serious competition in the award category, competing against Milli Vanilli's Fab Morvan, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, and even Grammys ceremony host Noah.

The album features brief passages drawn from talks and writings that reflect on mindfulness, harmony, and well-being.

Wainwright is one of several musicians who appear on the project, along with Maggie Rogers and Andra Day.