Grandmother's Burmese Weizza Mercury Bronze and similar items

~ Voodoo Priestess Estate ~ Grandmother's Antique Burmese Weizza Mercury Bronze Cobra Opium Den Weight A Poppy Demon Shrine circa 1830 - Gullah Dr. Buzzard's Gift and Master Suite Find ~!~ Twenty-three and a half years have now passed since we were called to do the estate that had been closed up for seventeen years! The Voodoo Estate! This type of call usually gets us excited as they are a treasure trove. Located here in Florida, there was no electricity or running water so we rigged our own lighting and in we went. If you have ever seen the Adams Family you will have some idea as to what we were greeted with! Then the attorney handling the liquidation gave us some background. The estate had belonged to an alleged powerful Voodoo Priestess/JooJoo Exorcist, grand daughter of a Marie Laveau, and favored daughter of a Marie Glapion. These names meant nothing to us, but the late night talk of Voodoo and exorcism in the old mansion was enough to make us decide to spend the night in a hotel and return in the morning to assess the estate. The rest is history. Our research has shown that this woman was what she claimed and was indeed descended from a long line of well known Vodoun family originating in New Orleans in the early 1800's. We were pretty unnerved by this until we discovered they were also devout Catholics! Although I have to admit this was unlike any Catholic home we have ever been in and some of the items found inside were a little more than disturbing. There was no feeling of dread or unwelcome in the mansion, however there was quite a bit of contraband and other items we can or will not sell here. This is one of a few items from this estate we will be posting this week, so check our other listings! We will, upon the new guardian's request, issue a named Letter of Authenticity with each lot from this estate, complying with the terms set forth to us by the estate's attorney. ~!~ Some Back Story Her Master Suite contained two alcove sitting room shrines, each was dedicated to her mother (Marie Glapion) and grandmother (Marie Laveau) which she and those associated with this estate, considered to be haunted by the mistresses, which her journals frequently allude to. This antique Cobra snake opium weight is one of the thirty-four assorted lead, bronze and iron amulets and opium weights that were used with the named, "Poppy Demon Shrine" shown below. These were recovered from grandmother's alcove and the letters, journals and inventory of this estate tell us they were given to her grandmother by a man they name as Gullah Dr. Buzzard of New Orleans in 1930 who stole the shrine, along with its weights, from a San Francisco opium den he had visited. All were recovered from this alcove and we will be offering them individually and in lots, so please stay tuned, She tells a fascinating tale of Dr. Buzzard visiting grandmother with this tale and these gifts, as told to her by her mother, Marie Glapion. The owner of the establishment was a Chinese sorcerer who Dr Buzzard had seen at this shrine, invoking The Poppy Demon with the little ducks. What he witnessed caused him to covet these items and conceal them in his cloak on the way out, gleeful in the fact that stealing them increased their power. This idea of stolen articles of magic increasing in power is frequently found in many cultures. Dr Buzzard Her journals first mention a South Carolina Sea Islander Root Man named "Dr. Buzzard," in reference to her mother's death bed visit to him in 1872. Her entries make it apparent that there were numerous ?Dr. Buzzard's? that not only she, but her mother and grandmother before her had contact with during their lives, thirty four of them to be exact, but many of these may have been the same man and certainly their sons, but it is the entries from her mother's journals that mention the first of them. Her inventory entries regarding a handful of Asian artifacts her mother also obtained from a Dr. Buzzard indicate he had traveled throughout Asia twice in his lifetime and had made acquaintances in numerous American Chinatowns. Many descendant's of these Dr. Buzzard's are mentioned in her entries, along with their apprentices, many of whom also went by the same name. All were assuredly root workers who followed in that original Dr. Buzzard's footsteps, but making them nearly impossible to identify and attribute individually. Our own research, and a foray into this area revealed these people did, and still do exist. We interviewed seven current day Dr. Buzzard's, and two of them each had three ritual implements and charms they showed us and described as being made from the remains of the original Dr. Buzzard. The description of the funeral rights of Dr. Buzzard and the comparable three bone artifacts in our possession compose nine of the twelve repurposed remains of the original Dr. Buzzard. ~!~ The Opium Poppy Demon and its Invocation Her journal entries list, "Poppy Demon Invocation" for use in, "Chasing the Dragon." This is described as a ritual and social practice of soaking a measured (weighed) ball of opium in absinthe, placing it an offering spoon, then pouring a small amount of absinthe in the spoon to,"saute the ball of dope" before it would be smoked either in a pipe or by heating the spoon and inhaling the smoke through a pipe. Although done socially at their in house lounge, they would also, "Chase the Dragon" in a religious invocation of "The Poppy Demon." Using this shrine with these weights along with polished reflective surfaces, they would materialize apparitions of this demon during, "ceremonial use in calling the demon spirits into this world," claiming they were able to summon what they called it's, "Spirit Guides justifiably described as Poppy Demons." There are numerous journal entries concerning this and their use of opium and absinthe induced meditations, one of which reads; "androgynous energies well suited as in dream work, shielding one from dream attack and nightmares. Used in communication they are as a conduit with their realms and are soothing to the eye and spirit." She also makes numerous entries concerning these sessions attracting, "a good number of life energies and manifestations that will linger in the reflections." Later entries urge caution in making eye contact with unknown apparitions and caution the use of this invocation by "the feint of heart and inexperienced." We take her word for this. Real or imagined, we certainly understand why she and her associates was as feared and respected as they were. ~!~ Antique Burmese Weizza Mercury Bronze Opium Den Weights According to her journals, she discontinued use of the shrine in the late 1940's, replacing it with two others for their use. It was then relegated to grandmother's alcove, the exterior of which became storm damaged, most likely during Hurricane Andrew. Although the shrine was damaged, we do not believe it was damaged by the storm. The shrine and aforementioned thirty-four weights are some of the few pieces recovered from this area. There are numerous mentions in their journals and letters, cautioning the use and storage of these artifacts. Apparently they have a habit of acting on their own and creating a creature akin to a Tokoloshe (a dwarf like water spirit). Hence, no photos of them together with the shrine which has already been sold with one of the weights. Her journals and inventory name this one an, "Antique Burmese Weizza Mercury Bronze Naga Opium Den Weight." It is also apparent the proprietor of the den was a Weizza, most likely in exile as they name him in numerous crimes, including murder. They also name him as one of the maker's of some of these weights in his collection. Once again we come to missing or damaged ledgers which told us more of these people and later interactions with them Our own research revealed; Weizza From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, for the most part... A weizza or weikza is an immortal, supernatural wizarding mystic in Buddhism in Burma associated with esoteric and occult practices such as recitation of spells, samatha, mysticism and alchemy. The goal of this practice is to achieve immortality and the state of the Weizza, who awaits the appearance of the future Buddha, Metteya. Weikza practices are less common than merit-making practices or vipassana meditation. During the socialist era from 1962 to 1988, Ne Win banned secret weizza associations, weizza magazines and literature, and portrayals of weizza from films and other media, considering them a threat to his regime. Weizza have made a resurgence since 1988, particularly following the abolition of the national censorship board in 2012. Burmese pagodas often house weizza shrines, where they are venerated for their spiritual purity and their devotion to those in need. Weizza teachers have also amassed hundreds of thousands of followers using social media. Etymology The word weizza comes from the Pali word vijja, which means ?knowledge? or ?wisdom? and is distantly related to the English word "wizard." Weizzas in the Historical Tradition Famous Yogis and Wizards from Myanmar Aside from epigraphs, there are no local Indic or vernacular compositions that have been securely dated to pre-Pagan Burma. However, there are some later attributions of texts that were written during the first millennium. One such example is the Kappala kara, a vijjadhara ("weikza") text said to have been written by the bhikkhu Uttamasiri during the first century CE. The text survives in an 18th-century Pali-Burmese nissaya version (which attributes the text to Uttamasiri in its colophon) compiled by Taungdwin Sayadaw Ña abhidhammala kara. In Myanmar, there are two classes of wizards; the sons and the weizzas. The former are considered a bane to society, while the latter spend their days helping the common folk and undoing the curses brought upon by the sons. The commonly known weizzas known today first appeared during the Konbaung dynasty, when Bo Bo Aung, a monk in Sagaing, discovered manuscripts revealing the secrets of weizza. However, many recognized weizzas today come from before the Konbaung dynasty. This was the last dynasty to rule Burma before colonial rule. Before weizzas, there were the Zawgyi and Yawgi. The Zawgyi were wizards who were written about in Burmese literature, while the Yawgi were Buddhist yogis who lead ascetic lives and wore brown robes. They followed eight to ten precepts of Buddhism, whereas most laymen follow five. Weizzas are divided into four major orders: The Pyada Weizza, who work with mercury, the Than Weizza, who work with iron, the Se Weizza, who specialize in medicine and the In Weizza, who specialize in yantra signs and squares. Among these, the Than and In are considered the most powerful. The Pyada Weizza, or Mercury Wizards, also study alchemy in order to produce gold and silver from more common metals. The Than Weizzas are considered by their followers as masters of not only their subject, but also as medical advisers. Purported Abilities Among their powers, weizzas possess the ability to see past lives, see and hear things that are far away, read minds, teleport, dive into the earth, walk on water, and be in multiple places simultaneously. Powerful practitioners of the weizzas? way are purported to live for centuries, even choosing the time of their next reincarnation. The In Weizza, who work with cabalistic squares, use one's birth date and time to create powerful charms and spells. In The Burman, Sir J. George Scott described some squares and charms so powerful that they could set a house ablaze. Others, engraved in stone and embedded in one's skin, would prevent drowning. Merely scratching an in in a house or tree could cause lightning to strike it. Weizza Grimoires Two traditional manuscripts contain rudimentary guidelines on the practices of weizzas: the Bedin and the Deitton. The latter is a book on astrology and cabalistic science. Containing just basic principles of the art of weizzas, the teachings in these texts are often surpassed by the weizza's own individual study and personal advancement. However, these books were once complete, many having been burned by religious zealots in the time of the last Buddha. The remains were spared from the fire by Devadatta, the cousin of Shin Gautama. Devadatta was always plotting against Shin Gautama, so he saved portions of the old science. Thus, this style of learning is looked upon with suspicion by many religious folk. Medical Remedies Weizza prescriptions may be composed of chili powder, cloves, and ginger for fevers to earth-oil infused with seeds, bark, leaves, flowers, roots, and minerals. Weizzas are specially adept with pills and powders, which are carried in bright red phials made of heavily scented bamboo. These ingredients are gathered with attention to the phases of the moon and placement of the constellations. Another potent ingredient in the weizza's cabinet is meteoric stones, which can be gathered within three days of lightning striking a piece of earth and are used as ophthalmic medicine. Weizzas seldom use liquids in their practice of medicine. Medical Philosophies Two schools of thought exist in weizza medicine: The datsayas, whose primary focus is on diets and the beindawsayas, who work with potent drugs In both schools, the human body is divided into four elements (dats): earth (patawi dat), fire (tezaw dat), water (apaw dat), and air (wayaw dat). Some practitioners also include ether (akatha), though this element is disregarded by doctors. Earth: the flesh, bones, hair, intestines, etc. Fire: eating, drinking, chewing, and licking. Water: the fat, blood, bile, spittle, mucus, etc. Air: the six kinds of winds. Modern Perception of Weizzas Weizza following still exists in Myanmar, though the socialist government during the Ne Win era suppressed this ideology. The former government forbade the publication of weizza materials and selling of weizza prints, which are popular in household altars. Even so, weizza followers abound. There exist exclusive groups of weizza devotees called gaing. These groups follow a set of tenets, are headed by a charismatic leader, and center their devotion on one or more weizza saints. A list of Notable Weizzas Bo Bo Aung Bo Min Gaung Kyaikhtisaung Sayadaw Yatkansin Taung Sayadaw Setkya Mintha ~!~ Mercury Bronze Many of those associated with this estate were no strangers to alloys containing mercury. One regional alchemic alloy called Mekapat had been brought to the estate from Thailand. This is an ancient recipe for material used to make sacred objects. It was made by alloying lead, LekLai, copper, cave minerals, herbs, mercury, silver, gold, etc. or any combination thereof. It is said to be holy material that once hardened into its permanent shape begins a maturing process of supernatural power. Already powerful at birth, it becomes stronger with age and these amulets are well known to protect one from bodily harm or mishaps. ~!~ But Back to the Weight It's Cobra depiction is heaped in regional folklore as Naga. Naga From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, for the most part... Naga is a Sanskrit word which basically refers to a "serpent" or "snake" especially the King cobra. The term Naga in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism denotes divine, semi-divine deities, or a semi-divine race of half-human half-serpent beings that resides in the heavenly Patala (netherworld) and can occasionally take human form. They are principally depicted in three forms: wholly humans with snakes on the heads and necks; common serpents or as half-human half-snake beings. A female naga is a "nagi," "nagin" or "nagini." Nagaraja is seen as the king of nagas and naginis. They are common and hold cultural significance in the mythological traditions of many South Asian and Southeast Asian cultures. In Sanskrit, a naga is a cobra, the Indian cobra (Naja naja). There are several words for "snake" in general, and one of the very commonly used ones is sarpa. Sometimes the word naga is also used generically to mean "snake." The word is cognate with English 'snake'. The mythological serpent race that took form as cobras often can be found in Hindu iconography. The nagas are described as the powerful, splendid, wonderful and proud semidivine race that can assume their physical form either as human, partial human-serpent or the whole serpent. Their domain is in the enchanted underworld, the underground realm filled with gems, gold and other earthly treasures called Naga-loka or Patala-loka. They are also often associated with bodies of waters ? including rivers, lakes, seas, and wells ? and are guardians of treasure. Their power and venom made them potentially dangerous to humans. However, they often took beneficial protagonist role in Hindu mythology, such as in Samudra manthan mythology, Vasuki, a nagaraja who abides on Shiva's neck, became the churning rope for churning of the Ocean of Milk. Their eternal mortal enemies are the Garudas, the legendary semidivine birdlike-deity. Vishnu is originally portrayed in the form sheltered by a naga but the iconography has been extended to other deities as well. The serpent is a common feature in Ganesha iconography and appears in many forms: around the neck, use as a sacred thread (Sanskrit: yajñyopavita) wrapped around the stomach as a belt, held in a hand, coiled at the ankles, or as a throne. Shiva is often shown garlanded with a snake. Maehle (2006: p. 297) states that "Patanjali is thought to be a manifestation of the serpent of eternity." As in Hinduism, the Buddhist naga generally has the form of a great cobra, usually with a single head but sometimes with many. At least some of the nagas are capable of using magic powers to transform themselves into a human semblance. The naga is sometimes portrayed as a human being with a snake or dragon extending over his head. One naga, in human form, attempted to become a monk; and when telling it that such ordination was impossible, the Buddha told it how to ensure that it would be reborn a human, and so able to become a monk. In the "Devadatta" chapter of the Lotus Sutra, the daughter of the dragon king, an eight year old longnü (naga), after listening to Mañjusri preach the Lotus Sutra, transforms into a male Bodhisattva and immediately reaches full enlightenment. This tale appears to reinforce the viewpoint prevalent in Mahayana scriptures that a male body is required for Buddhahood, even if a being is so advanced in realization that they can magically transform their body at will and demonstrate the emptiness of the physical form itself. Nagas are believed to both live on Mount Meru, among the other minor deities, and in various parts of the human-inhabited earth. Some of them are water-dwellers, living in streams or the ocean; others are earth-dwellers, living in underground caverns. The nagas are the followers of Virupakkha, one of the Four Heavenly Kings who guards the western direction. They act as a guard upon Mount Sumeru, protecting the devas of from attack by the asuras. Among the notable nagas of Buddhist tradition is Mucalinda, Nagaraja and protector of the Buddha. In the Vinaya Sutra (I, 3), shortly after his enlightenment, the Buddha is meditating in a forest when a great storm arises, but graciously, King Mucalinda gives shelter to the Buddha from the storm by covering the Buddha's head with his seven snake heads. Then the king takes the form of a young Brahmin and renders the Buddha homage. It is noteworthy that the two chief disciples of the Buddha, Sariputta and Moggallana are both referred to as Mahanaga or "Great Naga." Some of the most important figures in Buddhist history symbolize nagas in their names such as Dignaga, Nagasena, and, although other etymons are assigned to his name, Nagarjuna. In the Vajrayana and Mahasiddha traditions, nagas in their half-human form are depicted holding a naga-jewel, kumbhas of amrita, or a terma that had been elementally encoded by adepts. According to tradition, Prajñaparamita sutras had been given by the Buddha to a great Naga who guarded them in the sea, and were conferred upon Nagarjuna later. In Thailand and Java, the naga is a wealthy underworld deity. For Malay sailors, nagas are a type of dragon with many heads. In Laos they are beaked water serpents. The seven-headed nagas often depicted as guardian statues, carved as balustrades on causeways leading to main Cambodian temples, such as those found in Angkor Wat. Apparently they represent the seven races within naga society, which has a mythological, or symbolic, association with "the seven colors of the rainbow." Furthermore, Cambodian naga possess numerological symbolism in the number of their heads. Odd-headed naga symbolize the Male Energy, Infinity, Timelessness, and Immortality. This is because, numerologically, all odd numbers come from One. Even-headed naga are said to be "Female, representing Physicality, Mortality, Temporality, and the Earth." In Javanese and Balinese culture, Indonesia, a naga is depicted as a crowned, giant, magical serpent, sometimes winged. It is similarly derived from the Shiva-Hinduism tradition, merged with Javanese animism. Naga in Indonesia mainly derived and influenced by Indic tradition, combined with the native animism tradition of sacred serpents. In Sanskrit the term naga literally means snake, but in Java it normally refer to serpent deity, associated with water and fertility. In Borobudur, the nagas are depicted in their human form, but elsewhere they are depicted in animal shape. Early depictions of circa-9th-century Central Java closely resembled Indic Naga which was based on cobra imagery. During this period, naga serpents were depicted as giant cobras supporting the waterspout of yoni-lingam. The examples of naga sculpture can be found in several Javanese candis, including Prambanan, Sambisari, Ijo, and Jawi. In East Java, the Penataran temple complex contain a Candi Naga, an unusual naga temple with its Hindu-Javanese caryatids holding corpulent nagas aloft. The later depiction since the 15th century, however, was slightly influenced by Chinese dragon imagery?although unlike its Chinese counterparts, Javanese and Balinese nagas do not have legs. Naga as the lesser deity of earth and water is prevalent in the Hindu period of Indonesia, before the introduction of Islam. In Balinese tradition, nagas are often depicted battling Garuda. Intricately carved naga are found as stairs railings in bridges or stairs, such as those found in Balinese temples, Ubud monkey forest, and Taman Sari in Yogyakarta. In a wayang theater story, a snake (naga) god named Sanghyang Anantaboga or Antaboga is a guardian deity in the bowels of the earth. Naga symbolize the nether realm of earth or underworld. Naga are believed to live in the Laotian stretch of the Mekong or its estuaries. Lao mythology maintains that the naga are the protectors of Vientiane, and by extension, the Lao state. The naga association was most clearly articulated during and immediately after the reign of Anouvong. An important poem from this period San Leupphasun discusses relations between Laos and Thailand in a veiled manner, using the naga and the garuda to represent the Lao and the Thai, respectively. The naga is incorporated extensively into Lao iconography, and features prominently in Lao culture throughout the length of the country, not only in Vientiane. In Malay and Orang Asli traditions, the lake Chini, located in Pahang is home to a naga called Sri Gumum. Depending on legend versions, her predecessor Sri Pahang or her son left the lake and later fought a naga called Sri Kemboja. Kemboja is the Malay name for Cambodia. Like the naga legends there, there are stories about an ancient empire in lake Chini, although the stories are not linked to the naga legends. ~!~ We believe this weight was made by one of three associated Weizza, one of which was the opium den owner in San Francisco exile. It was used to weigh precious metals, opium and other ingredients they used in their practices which included spell casting and invocations. It is one of the many forms of animal weights of the Chinese zodiac that were cast in Burma, Siam and Laos and considered rare as very few genuine weights are known to exist.. Unmarked, it displays a well worn patina from over a hundred years of handling. It measures approximately 15/16" x 11/16" x 9/16" and weighs 24.2 grams. We only unwrapped these items for this photo session and no one has attempted to use them. It is certainly an unusual antique artifact with an extraordinary provenance, that is much nicer then the photographs have been able to depict. ~!~ We have been contacted and visited by a number of people who were interested in the items from this estate since our first batch was listed. Among the buyers have been known psychics and practitioners. More than one, after adorning themselves or handling their purchase, stated "this is a woman of power!" Many of our clients, after receiving items from this estate have reported dream contacts and other unexplained phenomenon. Unusual, authentic Voodoo Priestess Estate piece and at a bargain price! This is truly a rare opportunity to own anything with attributes to this estate. The majority of this estate is now gone. Most of what we had left, and it was considerable, has been split up and sold to a couple of private, foreign collector practitioners and will never be available to the public again. We made the decision to do this as we have had some pretty strange visits from even stranger individuals and there have been enough unexplained phenomenon going on in the warehouse where her things were kept that many of our employees refused to go in there. The pieces offered and sold here are some of the few remaining pieces that will ever be offered to the public. Nice addition to any collection, wardrobe or decor, displays really well. Really doesn't get any better than this. There are 6 photographs below to tell the rest of this tale. Buyer to pay $5.85 for Insured Ground Shipping with Tracking, handling and lagniappe. We Combine Shipping. Rest assured your order will be carefully packed to withstand the onslaught of the most deranged of parcel carriers. International Buyer's, Please email us for a Shipping Quote. Payment is due at listing end. Text and Photos Copyright 2001-2025 bushidobuce, all rights reserved. ~!~ Powered by SixBit's eCommerce Solution