Hi,

I'm quite sure Marolyn was mentally tortured; I have no doubts about that at all.  She thought she married the Lord of the Universe.  I wonder how long that has lasted!  But I still don't feel sorry for her.  Not one ounce. 

While Rawat indulged his children's every whim isn't abuse, it's not good parenting, either. That's not loving a kid.  For Rawat to be driving all over town to buy them stuff doesn't say anything about what may or may have been happening behind closed doors.  But, none of us know anything about what went on in their home. Not much, anyway.  Those kids had nannies so they might have been shielded from a lot of stuff, but they still were taught to kiss his feet from infancy!  That's so sick.  They were also place on very large stages during the big cult circuses their father held.  They had no choice about that and it had to be very scary for a little kid.

Plus, there are plenty of abusive parents who indulge their kids as a way of relieving themselves of guilt when they've been abusive, too.  It's the typical MO of an wife abuser.  They abuse, then reward after apologizing.  It's an act they put on to fool themselves, the spouse, kids and others (outsiders) into believing they are a good parent and person.  It's a true mind-fuck for the family.  But, again, I don't know what has happened in the Rawat homes. 

However, if those kids ever witnessed Rawat emotionally and mentally abusing Marolyn verbally, as has been described, well then that is child abuse, and it was her responsibility as their mom to get the hell out. It might not even have been reportable abuse, but it's still not healthy for children to see their mother treated that way at all. That's what creates emotional disorders for adult children of battered/emotionally abused women.  There doesn't even have to be hitting involved, just the emotional abuse is enough.   

One thing that did occur to me after I wrote my other post is that Marolyn also was called "Mom" by premies around her.  That must have added to her burden of responsibility to keep the act going and I wouldn't be surprised if she didn't even know it was an act a lot of the time.  I'll give her that much.

I'm surprised at how much folks here want to cut Marolyn so much slack.  In a way, it sort of proves my point to some degree.  She's a very weak person and doesn't have a backbone at all.  I don't think she was sick all her life either and she has lived quite well and had plenty of resources to leave if she wanted to.  Didn't she get a degree in psychology?  Marolyn at least must have watched a Lifetime movie or two about abusive husbands.

She always struck me as a real wimpy woman and I don't know if she had a mental illness.  Being under the influence of mind-control in a cult is not a mental illness but, being married to Rawat could definitely create one.  She may have been driven to emotional disorders, or syndromes, such as Stockholm Syndrome, but I don't know that unless she talks!

You did make a good point about M disowning his mother though. That's a huge message not only to his wife, but kids, too.  Especially to Marolyn, though.  The power of a narcissistic person is difficult for most people to understand especially what it's like living with one. That can do no wrong whatsoever.  It's not even in the picture!  And they have ultimate power and control over everyone's life around them. 

I wouldn't be surprised if Marolyn can't face her own guilt, if she ever has had a glimmer of understanding about what kind of life she brought those kids into.  The cult business life.  My guess is that she's completely emmersed in deep denial and I would agree that since her anureism (sp?) and stroke, she probably, well, just surrendered. 

I don't think Marolyn Rawat's living in a trailer park or holding down a job. (Not that living in a trailer park is bad.) 

Cynthia