Govinda dāsī: It was a big snake? Very big? And was it Śeṣa?
Prabhupāda: That is another thing. It may be understood that he was Śeṣa, but that was the incident. And another incident is that when He was just walking... So it is the system that small children, they are decorated with ornaments here, here, bangle, so many ornaments, here. So one thief saw that... He stole away the child. So he was seeking some secret place, lonely place, so that he can rob of... In this way seeking, seeking, he traveled, and at last he came just in front of the house, and he dropped the child, that "Somebody may see that I have taken this child. Then I'll be beaten, I will be caught." So out of fear he fled away. And the guardians, ladies, they were very much anxious, "Who has taken the child? He was with ornaments." But they saw that the child is there. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu enjoyed for some time on the shoulder of the thief.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Were they liberated souls? The thief?
Prabhupāda: At least, after Caitanya Mahāprabhu's getting on their shoulders, (laughs) they must have been liberated. No flower? Bring some flower.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He would sometimes eat clay?
Prabhupāda: Yes. That was when He was about three years old. So generally, for morning the children given nice sandeṣa, sweetmeat, and this puffed rice in a cane pot and He would eat. But Caitanya Mahāprabhu was eating clay. So His mother said, "Oh, why You are eating clay?" Then He said, "What is the difference between clay and this foodstuff? After all, everything is clay. It is produced from clay." This is criticizing the Māyāvādī philosophy that everything is one.