Zigu (Toilet Goddess)

Zigu is a latrine deity in Chinese folk religion, also known as Zigū or Cègū (Latrine Lady). Legend holds that she was originally a concubine of Li Jing, Prefect of Shouyang during the Tang dynasty, who was persecuted out of jealousy by his principal wife and died wrongfully in a latrine on the 15th day of the 1st lunar month. Moved by her unjust fate, Heaven appointed her as the Latrine Deity. In former times, on Lantern Festival night, women would fashion effigies of Zigu from rice straw and cloth scraps, then enshrine and worship them in latrines or beside pigsties, consulting her on matters concerning sericulture, mulberry cultivation, and general fortune or misfortune—a ritual known as 'Welcoming Zigu'. This custom has been documented since the Six Dynasties period and flourished especially during the Tang and Song dynasties, appearing frequently in literary encyclopedias and anthologies. The veneration of Zigu embodies women’s empathy and self-pity in premodern society, making her one of the rare goddesses in Chinese folklore both worshipped exclusively by women and consulted exclusively for women’s concerns.