The thing about it is this:  It's a destructive cult, which means it's secretive, the leader is secretive and the leader answers to no one.  And that means:  no one.

The thing about cult leaders is that they are all pretty much the same.  They are narcissitic megalomaniacs, possibly psychopaths and sociopaths, and they don't care about anybody but themselves.  They live their lives in a vacuum, isolated from everyone else but a selected few, and they don't interact with their congregations -- at least that's how Prem Rawat's always been.

I spent a lot of time around him in 1979-1980 and he is very uncomfortable around people he doesn't know well.  The premies around him he did know well he treated like dirt -- it's almost a sport for him.  He comes off as almost shy, but he has a lot of power over his followers, so it's kind of weird to watch him in a group of people.  He has absolutely no social skills whatsoever, and often says very inappropriate things to folks.  That's not surprising, since he's been the Lord of the Universe since he was a little kid, and grew up being a nasty little prick ever since.  He has a real lousy personality on top of that.  What you see on the stage is just that:  a stage act, nothing more.  All pretend and make-believe.

Rawat has much to much to answer for to ever consent to speak to ex-premies.  He won't even answer real questions posed by current followers, so, I'm not holding my breath! 

Cynthia