Culture encompasses the way of life of a society. It includes the attitude of the people toward others, their behaviour, mannerisms and ways to celebrate different aspects of life. It also includes the ways in which the people express themselves through fine and performing arts.

Uttar Pradesh rewarded the state with two greatest gifts to humanity, those are two epics, 'Ramayana' and 'Mahabharata'. From the epic age, the territory of Uttar Pradesh being nurtured by several fresh streams of culture, the two most significant being those generated by the teachings of the Buddha and Mahavira, the 24th Jain Tirthankar.

The fountainheads of Brahmanical culture are centered at holy places as Kashi, Ayodhya, Prayag, Mathura and the Himalayan hermitages. Mathura has proved to be a veritable store-house of buried ancient art, both of the Brahmanical and Buddhist varieties and Kashi, which has withstood the ravages of times, of living Hindu art.

Its people who belong to many religions and come from distant parts of the country but have had the latitude to recreate their own native cultures. Afghans, Kashmiris, Bengalis, Parsis and Punjabis immigrants settled here. Christians, Hindus, Muslims and Buddhists all found the freedom to practice their religions and pass it on to successive generations.

While it is secular, liberal and progressive state, at the same time it is deeply rooted in social and religious traditions and taboos.