Once upon a time the land of Tibet was a great boundless sea whose foaming waves crashed onto the beach densely covered with pines, hemlocks and palms. Above the forest, mountain ranges rose one upon another, and wisps of clouds rolled over the horizon. Within the forest, exotic flowers and grasses grew in profusion, deer and antelopes galloped in herds, and rhinoceroses roamed slowly in small groups, leisurely ambling to the water's edge to drink. Cuckoos, thrushes and larks hopped on treetops, warbling harmoniously, and hares gamboled in the green meadows. Such was the charming picture of peace and tranquility!

But one day, a giant five-headed poisonous dragon suddenly rose up from the sea. It threw the forest into confusion, stirred bottomless waves, and destroyed the flowers, plants and trees. The birds and animals dwelling in the forest thought catastrophe had befallen them. They fled to the east but the eastern forest had toppled over and the green meadows were flooded. They swarmed back to the west, but the west, too, was a world of angry waves. As the animals and birds prepared to meet their doom, suddenly over the sea there appeared a five-colored cloud which trans-formed itself into the Five Sister Dakinis. Alighting on the beach, the Dakinis used their supernatural power to subdue the five-headed poisonous dragon. Once the demon was defeated, the great sea became calm again, and the deer, antelopes, monkeys, hares and birds that lived in the forest prostrated themselves before the Dakinis and expressed their gratitude to their saviors.

As the Dakinis prepared to take their leave for heaven, the animals and birds begged them to stay and favor them with their presence. Out of compassion, the Five Sister Dakinis agreed to remain and share their peaceful days with the forest dwellers. The Dakinis then ordered the sea to retreat. As a consequence, the east changed into a dense forest, the west became a boundless expanse of fertile soil, the south was transformed into a garden of flourishing flowers and grasses, and the north into an endless open grassland. The Five Sister Dakinis next transformed themselves into the five main peaks of the Himalayan Range: Tashi Tseringma, Tingki Shalsangma, Miyo Losangma, Chopen Dinsangma, and Tadkar Dosangma all of which stand towering at the south-west border of Tibet in defense of the happy paradise. The main peak Tingki Shalsangma is now known as Mt. Qomolangma and is the highest peak in the world, beloved by the local people as the "Goddess Peak."

This folk legend reflects the fact that the Tibetan plateau was originally a boundless sea which later gradually changed into dry land. Recent fossil finds and geological investigations have proved beyond doubt the origins of the Tibetan plateau. In 1964 and 1966 two ichthyosaurs were discovered in the Himalayas and in Nyalam Dzong, dating back 180 million years. These ten-meter- long prehistoric fish lived at the bottom of a great sea which then covered what is now the Tibetan plateau, thus verifying the old legend.

But the change from sea to dry land did not happen overnight. Dinosaur fossils have also been unearthed in the Tamala Pass which prove that sixty or seventy million years ago the Tibetan region was a hot, humid swampy land with lush vegetation. Over the millennia, the swamps gradually dried up and the earth's crust rose bit by bit, making life impossible for the dinosaurs which eventually died out.

Even today this gradual movement of the earth's crust continues, and the Tibetan plateau is calculated to be still growing at a rate of one or two centimeters a year.