[November 16 update: “Thich Nhat Hanh health update: Doctors cautiously optimistic”]

Update – Wednesday November 12, 6:45pm EST; Plum Village released a statement on Wednesday evening, saying that Thich Nhat Hanh suffered a severe brain hemorrhage on Tuesday, November 11. He is now responsive and there are signs that a full recovery may be possible.

Thich Nhat Hanh’s health has been fragile for two months, due to his age. The statement from Plum Village asked practitioners to send healing energy to Thich Nhat Hanh: “Let us all around the world take refuge in our practice, going together as a river to offer Thay our powerful collective energy. We are all cells of the great Sangha Body that Thay has manifested in his lifetime.”

Read the whole statement at Plum Village’s website.

This morning, rumors circulated that Thich Nhat Hanh was in grave condition and likely to die soon. In an email to Lion’s Roar, Sister Chan Khong dispelled those rumors, saying Thich Nhat Hanh is “OK thanks to the patriarchs.”

Here is the text of Sister Chan Khong’s email, including a request for lay practitioners to send healing thoughts:

Thay is still in the hospital. He is OK thanks to the patriarchs. If someone want to send healing energy to Thay please ask them to keep one day per week avoiding eating beef, pork, chicken and fish (vegetarian) per week and send the merit to offer life to Thay. That’s what we are requesting lay friends to do that now !

We will update this story as we receive more information.