Manas is a heroic epic of Khalkhas and one of the three major heroic epics in China. Manas is a famous hero and leader in the legend of Khalkhas and the incarnation of prowess, bravery and wisdom. This epic eulogizes the story that hero Manas and his seven future generations led Khalkhas people to fight with intruders and evil forces for freedom and happiness. It reflects Khalkhas' bravery, chivalry, unswerving national spirit and character.

In a broad sense, "Manas" is the general name of eight epics. All of the eight epics are named after their respective heroes, such as Manas, Saimaitaiyi, Saiyitaike, Kainaimu, Saiyite, Aselebaqia and Biekebaqia, Suomubilaike and Qigetaiyi. Each epic is an independent chapter and tells the story of a generation of heroes. They are all linked with each other to make the entire epic complete. This epic has a total of 210,000 lines, about 20 million characters.

In a narrow sense, Manas refers to the first epic Manas, featuring simplest content, most complete structure and art maturity. It is the most magnificent and the longest one in the eight epics. It is 1/4 of the entire epic and describes the marvelous experience and glorious achievements of the hero - Manas.