On the “second layer” of one of the stories about Zigu

Chinese authorial collections biji are one of the most important sources of the history of Chinese Literature as well as of various knowledge areas such as history and religious views of the Song dynasty era (960-1279). “Mengxi bitan” of Shen Kuo (1032-1096) is one of the collections, containing one of the most famous stories of Zigu - the goddess of latrine. The article makes an attempt to consider this text not only as a source about the history of beliefs of shenshi but also of North Song society social history. This text makes such an analysis possible due to the personal recollection nature of these records, as the author appears as a direct participant of the described events. The text is divided into two parts. One of these parts describes popular views about the goddess as well as popular practices of communication with her. Such as the well-known time and places of communication with this goddess, for example on the 15th day of the first month, and about her method of descent. This part of the text sets the scene for another part which Shen Ko writes in the form of his memories. The article makes the assumption that this part of the text opens some circumstances of taichang boshi Wang Lun family life where the daughter is in search of personal fulfillment and the attitude of the older family members towards this. The framed part of the text may be divided to two other parts. The first part is the story of Wang Lun daughter's obsession and her writing exercises. According to Shen Kuo, her texts were written by the goddess in ten never-before-seen handwriting styles. The article supposes that this was most likely a way to realize her calligrapher ability. The second part is the story of goddess epiphany. The article supposes that this story probably masks two events. The first event is the musical exercises because some of the shenshi class members disapproved training the daughters in music. The second event is a possible conflict in the family about the daughter's life plans. It is possible that the Zigu phrase about the impossible “to go along with” contain the hidden condemnation of the daughter's plans to become a nun.