Rath, Ratha or Rathasharma are Utkala Brahmins having Atreya or Krishnatreya gotra. They belong to Utkaliya Brahmin group of Northen India Panch Gauda Brahmins. Among other Brahmin community they hold high social status regarded as highly learned scholars and others used to take advice from them regarding religious or social activities. They derive their lineage to Saptarshi Atri Rishi, who lived near Mandakini river near Chitrakoot with his wife Sati Anusuiya. In Ramayan Lord Ram along with his wife Sita and brother Lakshman visited Rishi Atri and Sati Anusuiya at their hermit near Chitrakoot after crossing Yamuna river from prayagraj.it is here that Rishi Atri advised Lord Ram to proceed to dandakarayana for vanvaas. Maa Sati Anusuiya gave Sita Divya alankar and Anga vastra, which she had received from Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswar. These deva alankars and vastra remain new for ever.Sita used these anga vastra during fourteen years of vanvaas at panchbati. When Ravan took away Sita from panchbati she dropped these Divya alankaar from pushpak viman which helped Ram to reach Lanka. Atreya gotri generally belong to Kaanva sakha of Yajurveda. Being a Vedic Brahmin Atreya gotri are ordained to do adhyayan and adhyapaan of Vedas and other shastras. As they are shrotiya Brahmins they are also authorised to conduct Yagna and other Vedic rituals. However they usually do not perform karm Kand I.e., brotopanoyan, marriage, shraddh ceremony nor do they receive daan or dakshina. Between tenth to twelfth century the Gajapati of Jagannath dham invited learned Brahmins from Gangetic basin to Utkala and established Utkaliya Brahmin parampara. He gave them land and other facilities in sixteen villages near Puri for Vedic studies and performing rituals of Lord Jagannath. Subsequently with the permission of Gajapati King Atreya Gotri Brahmins migrated to Nayagad, Ganjam, Paralakhemundi, Jeypore and other kingdoms in southern Odisha. They also migrated to Cuttack, Dhenkanal, Sambalpur and Balangir in western Odisha. They however remained south of Mahanadi and rarely crossed to north Odisha. The distinct and unique attribute of Atreya gotri is their Istha Devi, who is Bhubaneswari irrespective of their place or lokachar. The surname in ancient days were given according to gotra and the speciality of the job done by Brahmin scholars. They especially specialise the Vikriti Paatha of Shukla Yajurveda and Rigveda which is Ratha Patha. The Veda can be recited in eleven different ways among which three are Prakruti and remaining seven are Vikruti. These are Samhita, Pada, Krama and Jataa, Rekha, Maala, Dhwaja, Shikha, Danda, Ratha and Ghana. So the surname holders once mastered the Ratha tradition of chanting Veda. Sometimes they are called Rathatreya.
Tradition
These group of Brahmins have Harihara worship and Bhuvaneshwari worship as family tradition. Goddess Bhuvaneshvari is regarded as their Kula devi. Many Odia Devi MahatmyaPandits also belong to this sub group. The revival of Utkala Brahmins is attributed to Pandit ShriSadashiva Rathasharma who in mid 20th century re-established the Sanskrit education in around Odisha. The Sadashiva Parishad is established in Puri to keep Sanskrit education alive.
Gotra
Ātreya Gotra: Generally belonging to the lineage of Maharṣi Atri, seer of the 5thmaṇḍala of the Ṛk Veda. Specifically, they are the direct descendants of Maharṣi Rathātreya one of the seers of this maṇḍala.
