There are few references to the panda found in folklore, most likely because pandas in the wild are very difficult to see and they are very shy. Pandas are known to have been kept by the emperor in the Han Dynasty (202 BC to 220 AD). During the Tang Dynasty (616 AD to 907 AD), two pandas were sent to the emperor of Japan as a gift.

One Tibetan legend focuses on how the pandas got their unique color markings.
           
Long, long ago, the pandas lived in the high mountains of Tibet. Their fur was completely snow white. They were friends with young shepherdesses, who watched their flock in the mountains around their village. 

One day a mother panda and her cub were playing with the shepherdesses and their flock, when a strong and hungry leopard attacked the panda cub.  The shepherdesses tried to save the cub, but were unsuccessful and the leopard killed the girls.
           
All the pandas in the area were very sad and held a memorial service for the shepherdesses and to remember their sacrifice for the panda cub. The local custom in the mountains was to cover your arms with ashes to honor the deceased.

The pandas were very sad and they all wept. They wiped their eyes with their paws, and covered their ears to block the sound of the crying. They hugged each other to comfort those crying. As they did this, the ashes blackened their fur. The pandas did not wash the black off their fur as a reminder of the girls. 

---

Another Variation
When the pandas came to the funeral they wore black armbands as a token of respect. They were so sad during the funeral service that they began to cry. As they cried, they wiped their eyes with the black armbands. As the black armbands became wet with tears, the dye began to run. As the pandas wiped their tears, large black marks were left on their eyes and ears. As the pandas hugged one another, the black dye stained their fur.            

Another Variation
One other variation of the story has the pandas turning the girls into a mountain with four peaks to ensure the girls are always remembered. This is the Four Girls Mountain Range located in the Sichuan province overlooking the Wolong Panda Reserve.