Maruts are sons of Rudra and Diti and attendants of divine king Indra. The number of Maruts varies from two to twenty-seven to sixty. Maruts are very aggressive and violent in character. They are thought to cause drive of clouds, bring the winds, fallen the trees, and crush the mountain. Sometimes Maruts attain Indra at his court and sometimes they accompany him in battle. They are depicted as armed with golden weapons of lightening and thunderbolt, having iron teeth and roaring like lions. They preside over north direction and ride in golden chariot driven by ruddy horses.

In Ramayana, the birth story of Maruts is narrated. The goddess Diti wanted to give birth to a son who would be as powerful as Indra. So she planned to remain pregnant for an entire century to accomplish this. Indra learned about this and was very worried. Indra finally destroyed her plan by hurling his thunderbolt at the womb to shatter the foetus into many pieces. The Maruts thus were born from the single splintered foetus and their power was distributed.