In the old days, there was a very poor area in Tibet which had no rivers
or good land, no warmth or fresh flowers, no trees or green grass. The people
who lived there suffered from hunger and cold all year round and did not know
what happiness was like. But despite this, they still believed that happiness must
exist somewhere in the world.
The old folk used to say that happiness was a beautiful bird living on a
snowy mountain far, far away in the east. Wherever the bird flew, happiness
went with it. Every year people went to look for this bird, but not a single one of
them ever returned. The Bird of Happiness was said to be guarded by three old
monsters, who could kill a man simply blowing through their long beards.
One year, an extremely bright boy called Wangjia was sent to find the
Bird of Happiness. On his departure, the girls of the village offered him barley
wine; and the mothers, in accordance with Tibetan custom, spread barley grains
on his head to wish him a good journey