Suddha Weixler, Revered Chicago Yoga Teacher, Retires

On Sunday, May 19, a party was held at Fernando’s Tequila Bar and Restaurant to celebrate Suddha Weixler, former director of Chicago Yoga Center, before he moves to Austria in June. Many of those in attendance were former yoga students of Suddha’s, most of whom he trained to become yoga teachers. Over the years, Suddha […]

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On Sunday, May 19, a party was held at Fernando’s Tequila Bar and Restaurant to celebrate Suddha Weixler, former director of Chicago Yoga Center, before he moves to Austria in June. Many of those in attendance were former yoga students of Suddha’s, most of whom he trained to become yoga teachers. Over the years, Suddha trained many teachers who went on to open their own yoga studios. They included Amy Beth Treciokas of YogaNow, Daren Friesen of Moksha Yoga, Quinn Kearny and Tom Quinn of YogaView, Jody Blumstein of Priya Yoga, Carly Carney of Beverly Yoga Center, and Miguel Latronica of Eight Limbs Yoga, among others.

Suddha also trained many teachers who now lead their own teacher trainings and retreats and others who teach yoga at universities, hospitals, health clubs, offices, and other locations. Some are full-time yoga teachers—among them Kali Om, David Wallin, Mary Klonowski, Patricia Hyland, Heidi Ellison-Childress, and Janna Parker.

Suddha Weixler with his students at N.U. Yoga in 1995.

Suddha, who came to Chicago in 1984, originally taught Iyengar-style yoga. In the 1990s, he traveled to India to study Ashtanga yoga with K. Pattabhi Jois, who created the style, and then, back in Chicago, began to host a Who’s Who of internationally known Ashtanga yoga teachers at Chicago Yoga Center, including Manju Jois (Pattabhi Jois’s oldest son), Richard Freeman, and David Swenson. Later he introduced his students to teachings of Krishnamacharya (considered to be the “Father of Modern Yoga”) taught by Srivatsa Ramaswami and Yin yoga taught by Yin yoga founder Paulie Zink, and well-known teachers Paul Grilley and Sarah Powers. In addition, over a period of 30 years, Suddha led international retreats to Peru, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Austria, Switzerland, Greece, Italy, Spain, France, Portugal, Croatia, India, Bali, and Mexico. Mexico, where he led 28 retreats over the years, was the most popular.

He returned to Germany in 1982, by which time he had become interested in learning meditation and exploring other aspects of yoga. He was inspired by a book by Swami Narayanananda, and when the Swami came to Germany, Suddha became his student, spending a total of six years in his ashrams in Germany, Denmark, and then the U.S. After he finished his teacher training in 1984, Swami Narayanananda told Suddha that his small ashram in Chicago, N.U. Yoga Center, needed someone to teach yoga. He moved into the ashram and began teaching two classes a week at the center, located at 2937 N. Southport. The numbers of students and classes grew steadily, and by 1991, the space had become inadequate. Further, other residents of the ashram had moved to Narayanananda ashrams in Wisconsin, California, or Germany. So, Suddha, who was the director by this time, moved the center to a larger facility at 3047 N. Lincoln. In 2004, he changed the name to Chicago Yoga Center.

In 1995, when Yoga Chicago magazine first interviewed him, Suddha was offering 11 classes each week plus private sessions, with three teachers assisting him. He also led Chicago-area weekend retreats throughout the year and a one-week retreat in Mexico. Soon he was teaching 25 classes a week, five classes a day. He eventually cut back to teaching 11 classes per week at locations that included the Art Institute of Chicago and Evanston Athletic Club, in addition to classes at Chicago Yoga Center. In 2019, after 30 years, Suddha retired from his Adjunct Associate Professorship at the School of the Art Institute. In 2020, like many studio directors, Suddha closed the center due to COVID, but continued to teach on Zoom.

Meditation and yoga philosophy were always at the forefront of Suddha’s personal practice and teaching. Yet he taught three styles of yoga—Iyengar, Ashtanga, and classical Hatha yoga—to thousands of students over the years.

In a Yoga Chicago survey conducted in 2016, Suddha offered the following responses:

Describe your teaching style in five words.

Authentic yoga is about Mind.

How has yoga changed your life?

Made me more humble, open-minded, respectful, disciplined, healthy, virtuous, spiritual, and less ego-centric.

What is the philosophy you try to instill in your students?

There is nothing to instill, because it is there already, just to be reminded of.

What was one of your most profound moments in teaching?

Knowing that the ULTIMATE teacher does it all, the ABSOLUTE is all pervading.

What do you see influencing or affecting yoga teachers and students in the next five years?

After 30 some years of practice and teaching, I understand that progress and process are interrelated, and free will and the law of cause and effect (Karma) co-create the human experience and condition. We are creating and reaping the fruits of our actions. When this is realized, time and space seem less of a limitation, except if wasted.

We wish Suddha the best as he moves to Austria and look forward to seeing him when he returns occasionally to Chicago to teach in person. He will continue to teach from Austria on Zoom. He also plans to lead one or two retreats each year in Europe and might write a book! You can keep in touch with Suddha through his website, http://www.yogamind.com.

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