I heard this but haven’t seen it online anywhere. Can anyone confirm or deny?
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Yes. Johannes and his wife Joy Manné Lewis died on 14 May 2025.
Harry Falk said: "Johannes Bronkhorst left this world today at noon in a controlled manner, as was his custom, together with his beloved wife Joy Manné.
He sent the last batch of his papers just a few days ago. "
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Yes, they both did euthanasia, as it is legal in Switzerland.
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And what do you think about that?
I find it, at the very least, truly shocking…
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May he & his wife find peace. 
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Yes i am shocked also. His wife Joy Manne was a scholar of Theravada Buddhism too.
You can read more on the Indology list
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I don’t think this is what @Sphairos was asking about. And I don’t think the comment’s in good taste, either. I don’t think this says anything about you as a person, and I don’t really want to get into a back-and-forth about it. I’m just saying it wasn’t the appropriate answer for the question asked.
I think, “When the dark cloud circulates, will it find their viññāṇas or not?”
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It includes this touching tribute from his former student, Vincent Eltschinger.
Johannes taught me Sanskrit and Indology; taught me never to take anything for granted, academic and religious traditions, which have so much in common, even less than the rest. A great master is leaving us, the author of an abundant, but also innovative and provocative body of work, which covered all areas of Indian studies, from Vyākaraṇa, his initial training, to Vedic and Buddhist studies, from Vaiśeṣika to Vedānta via Mīmāṃsā, Sāṅkhya, Jainism and Ājīvikism. His greatness lay in his erudition, and, almost as much, in his humility; I also remember a teacher always listening to his students, curious about their ideas, and laughing heartily with them. Johannes was also a man of convictions. The freedom to choose the time and circumstances of his death has always been one of these.
About a month ago, on the occasion of a meeting between colleagues and friends in Lausanne, Johannes took me aside and asked me to drive him home. On the way, he told me that he and his beloved Joy would soon be “leaving” to escape illness and debilitating age. We spent a beautiful and moving evening, a “last supper” so to speak. While my eyes were heavy, Johannes and Joy were perfectly serene, joking as if nothing were happening. We celebrated a cloudless friendship, without sadness, as if it were to last eternally. They still didn’t know the exact date of their “departure,” but it was imminent. And then, as if it were impossible for that meal to be our last, I asked him if he would lend himself to a last interview. A few days later, equipped with a camera, I asked Johannes about his life, his training, his career path, for almost two hours of a unique and privileged moment. I left with big eyes. It was imminent. It was today.
My sadness reflects my selfishness. Johannes and Joy entered death the same way they met and loved each other, and that alone is what counts, the very thing that makes me happy in spite of everything.
Johannes did not consider his life to be of any interest other than his work. He leaves us with it, and it has, he has everything to teach us.
Today he had Joy Manné’s son send a last message to his friends. I allow myself to quote its last paragraph: “Our sympathies are with those who are obliged to live through the sometimes long and often painful process of old age and dying.”
Vincent Eltschinger
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I agree that was an unfortunate comment. Johannes Bronkhorst was a magnificent scholar. I disagree with his textual chronology and many arguments he based on it, but that doesn’t erase the huge contribution to the history of Indian meditation traditions (in the plural).
Also, I think an underrated aspect of his scholarship was as a philosopher of religion. I got a lot from the following, perhaps lesser known works:
- Absorption: Human Nature and Buddhist Liberation, Buddhism Series (University Media, 2012)
- ‘Can Religion Be Explained?: The Role of Absorption in Various Religious Phenomena’, Method & Theory in the Study of Religion, 29.1 (2017), pp. 1–30, doi:10.1163/15700682-12341375
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I was trying to explain that despite not agreeing with his ideas, I appreciated his courageous, open minded thinking. If you think that’s not in good taste, I’m sorry.
Again, may he and his wife find peace.
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I didn’t flag the posts - but perhaps it would be best to honour the man discussing his work, which is a public affair; rather than nosing into his choice of departure, which is a completely private affair. 
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Please keep on topic. This post is about the acknowledgement of the deaths of two well known persons, not a discussion about Euthanasia and Ethics. We have a lot of threads about those topics.
Flagging is a tool to give the community the possibility to raise their voice/s. Please accept that.
Thank you.
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