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Human beings learn their cultural traditions and values from the inception of their lives. They acquire the cultural traditions and values through myths, legends, and fairy tales. It's great to know about one's own culture, but people should also attempt to inform themselves about other cultures for the sake of knowledge or to better understand each other. India is a beautiful country that shares different beliefs from other countries, which are what makes it unique. It has its own values, traditions and these are evident in the epic poems, fairy tales and famous people. The epic poems contain history and the beliefs that were passed down orally from generation to generation or a written down. The Mahabharata is one of the two most epic poems that embodies the essence of the Indian cultural heritage. The epic poem is an absorbing tale of a feud between two branches of a single Indian ruling family that culminates in a vast, cataclysmic battle. The two branches include the five Pandavas, the sons of the deceased Kind Pandu and the 100 Dhartarashtras, the sons of blind King Dhartarashtra. In a game of dice, the Dhartarashtras win and according the bet, the Pandavas live in wilderness for twelve years. After the Pandavas, fulfill their part of the bargain, the Dhartarashtras resist to restore half of the Kingdom to Pandavas. This dispute engenders the eighteen day battle between the two rival parties. In the end, Pandavas, with the help of God Vishnu in the form of Krishna, come out to be the victorious, but the victory was not easy because of the loss of beloved ones including Pandavas' five sons by their only wife, Draupadi. The idea that The Mahabharata portrays is that good vs. evil, right vs. wrong always leads to the ascendancy of good over evil and right over wrong. Ramayana is the other great Indian epic that takes place in India around 1000 B.C.E.
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