About us
Aikido Takemusu Kai
Aikido Takemusu Kai is the Australia Branch of a Japanese school, operating locally as a not for profit incorporated association. The school also has branches in the UK and Brazil.
We are a group of people dedicated to developing ourselves through a traditional martial art.
Aikido is a dynamic style. A way of restoring balance and harmony to people’s lives through physical practice. With shared power not dominant strength and care of oneself and others in place of counter attack, our student members experience an atmosphere of enthusiasm, mutual respect and joy of training.
George Eaton
Australia Branch Head
George Eaton is licensed in Japan as a master teacher (shihan) of Takemusu Aikido and the first non-Japanese shihan in the school promoted to the rank of 8th Dan. He is a leading exponent and pioneer of Takemusu Aikido in Australia and has a level two coaching accreditation with the Martial Arts Industry Association.
With over thirty years training experience, George is an exceptional teacher recognised internationally by his peers as having grasped the essence of Aikido. He practices the art as a way of life, a philosophy relevant to living his life effectively day to day in a rapidly changing world. George loves demonstrating Aikido’s creativity to others. He instructs in a traditional way, encouraging enjoyment of shared practice, as well as promoting self-discipline and self-development, which builds a sense of community in each dojo.
His first contact with Aikido came when attending a self-defense course in south London in 1978, going along with two fellow graduates, keen to maintain fitness and learn some new skills. He was captivated by the dynamic moves and decided to learn the art behind the techniques, joining the dojo which was led by Sensei Andrew Moxon.
In 1981 he had qualified as a chartered surveyor and decided to take a break from the U.K. with a working holiday in Australia. George stayed in the country, continued to practice Aikido locally and eventually formed a group to study Takemusu Aikido in Brisbane in 1986, with the support of Andrew Moxon who had moved to Japan to learn from Headmaster Suzuki Toshinobu Sensei, in Chiba prefecture.
George progressed up through the ranks until he was directly appointed to establish an Australia Branch of Aikido Takemusu Kai by the headmaster himself in 1992. His building of close ties with senior members of the school in Japan have enabled annual exchanges between international students, and for Australian practitioners to be ranked and accepted for teaching licenses in Japan.
He also developed a passion for the use of the win-win approach of Aikido in the workplace, which led him to achieve a post graduate diploma in Conflict Management from Macquarie University in 1999. Combining this academic qualification with his unique presentation of Aikido, he has delivered interpersonal skills workshops to a host of organisations including the Australian Taxation Office, Lend Lease, the Justice Department and Australia Post. George has worked with a host of groups, from soccer referees to child care workers, assisting individuals to better manage conflict and confrontation.
He oversees the school’s three branch dojos in south east Queensland and is currently residing in Victoria, exploring opportunities to expand the school there.
See our History page for more about the background of Takemusu Aikido.
