Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami
From the book “Sri Vraja-maṇḍala-parikramā”:
Only the Vrajavāsīs are qualified to take darśana of and fully relish Kṛṣṇa’s sweet pastimes, which are filled with topmost bliss. Nonetheless, the four-headed Brahmā, Mahādeva Śaṅkara, Devarṣi Nārada and many great saints and sages reside in numerous pastime places in Vrajabhūmi, worshipping the Supreme Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. This place, called Āṭasa-gaon, is Aṣṭavakra Muni’s place of worship. Āṭasa is the corrupted form of the word aṣṭavakra. This village lies four miles from Janāī-gaon and six miles from Vṛndāvana.
Rajashekhara Dasa
From the book “Chaurasi-kosa Vraja Mandala Parikrama”:
The name of Atas is a corrupted form of Atasu, which is derived from the name of Ashtavakra Muni, who according to the Bhakti-ratnakara, performed austerities near here on the old bank of the Yamuna River, “In Atasu-grama, the saint Ashtavakra performed austerities.” Astavakra Muni gains mention in many of the Puranas and spent a lot of his time in Vrindavana Dhama. As his name suggests, he was crippled and his bones were bent in eight different places. The word ‘ashta’ means ‘eight’ and ‘vakra’ means ‘bent’. Whoever ridiculed him or passed derogatory comments about his ugliness was inevitably cursed. According to the Brahma-vaivarta Purana, Ashtavakra Muni eventually sat in meditation on the banks of the Kusuma-sarovara, patiently waiting for the pastimes of Radha and Krishna to begin. One day, he suddenly glimpsed both Radha and Krishna enjoying Their loving pastimes with the gopis on the opposite bank of the lake and in transcendental ecstasy he gave up his body. His samadhi can be seen on the eastern bank of Kusuma-sarovara near a small Shiva Shrine.
There are three villages situated within two kilometers of each other, all with name including: Devi Atas, Bara Atas, and Chota Atas. The most important of these is Devi Atas, where the famous temple of Devi Ma (the mother goddess) is situated. In this temple are two separate Deities of Devi, one is of Ekanamsa Devi, Krishna’s sister, who is non-different from Yogamaya Devi and the other Deity is Yogamaya’s expansion of Manasa Devi. The goddess Yogamaya Devi along with all her various expansions, is generally worshiped as Goddess Durga, for the purpose of achieving material benefits. The Gaudiya Vaishnavas worship Yogamaya Devi as Krishna’s internal potency in order to achieve pure devotional service to Krishna, just as the gopis did.
When Krishna was born in Kamsa’s prison cell as the son of Devaki, Ekanamsa (Yogamaya) was born as His sister in Gokula from the womb of Yashoda Mayi. When Vasudeva exchanged Krishna for Ekanamsa and brought her back to the prison cell, Kamsa tried to kill her by dashing her on the ground. But instead she escaped his grip and flew into the sky while manifesting her eight armed form of Durga. After admonishing the sinful Kamsa, she informed him that Devaki’s eighth child was alive, Ekanamsa, sometimes called Ekananga, then disappeared from that place and is said to have come to Atasu to live in the forest of Vrindavana, where she remains even today. It is also said that the Deity of Manasa Devi was also worshiped for some time by Ashtavakra Muni. In some Puranas it is said that Ekanamsa, after chastising Kamsa, departed for the Vindhya Mountains where she is known by the name Vindyavali.
