The Illuminati Part II: Truth, Myth & Why We're So Obsessed

The Illuminati Part II: Truth, Myth & Why We're So Obsessed

Welcome back to The Conscious Conscience, where we sift through the swirling whirlpool of conspiracies, facts, and everything in between. I’m your host Delilah. Today, we’re tackling a heavyweight contender in the conspiracy world: the Illuminati. It’s that shadowy group everyone loves to blame for, well… everything. From Beyoncé’s career to 9/11, this “secret society” seems to have its fingers in every metaphorical pie. Or does it? 

Let's get into it in today's episode.

Episode Transcript

Delilah Tanner (00:16):
Welcome come back to the Conscious Conscience, where we sift through the swirling whirlpool of conspiracies, facts and everything in between. I'm your host, Delilah. Today, we're tackling a heavyweight contender in the conspiracy world, the Illuminati. It's that shadowy group everyone loves to blame for everything from Beyonce's career to 911. This secret society seems to have its fingers in every metaphorical pie. Or does it? Let's start with a recap of the facts from our last episode. Yes, there was an Illuminati. No, they didn't invent tik tok. Your h away or your least favorite political leaders. The original Bavarian Illuminati was founded in 1776 by Adam Wise Hop, a guy who wanted to challenge the oppressive grip of religion and monarchy. Think of them as a nerdy Enlightenment era book club trying to overthrow the establishment. They lasted a whopping ten years before the Bavarian government freaked out and banned them, scattering their members like glitter in the wind. By the late 1780s, the Illuminati as an actual organization was kaput, done, disbanded. But much like disco. Rumors of their demise were greatly exaggerated. Fast forward to the French Revolution, where conservatives blamed the Illuminati for beheading monarchs and starting chaos. Did Adam Wise Hops crew actually plan all that? Probably not. We can look towards the beheadings during the French Revolution for the factual and historical answer there, particularly during the reign of terror. The beheadings were primarily orchestrated by the revolutionary government, led by the Committee of Public Safety, under the dominant influence of Maximilien, Robespierre, George Danton and Jean-Paul Marat, among others. But hey, when society is unraveling, it's easier to blame a shadowy group of intellectuals than confront real issues like wealth inequality or bread shortages ahead of time. And we certainly wouldn't want to be giving the real revolutionists their due credit. But the actual Illuminati. Nowhere in sight. And also, realistically, executions didn't really align with their fundamentals. Then came the 19th century, where writers like Agustin Borel and John Robinson took these whispers and cranked them to 11. They claimed the Illuminati were secretly infiltrating Freemasonry and plotting world domination. Spoiler alert they weren't. But thanks to these guys, the Illuminati went from forgotten history to conspiracy canon. By the 20th century, the Illuminati was basically the rock star of conspiracy theories. Any time something bad happened wars, economic crashes, bad fashion choices, someone pointed the finger at them. The Cold War added a spicy new flavor with people connecting the Illuminati to communism, capitalism, and anything else that felt threatening. Pop culture got in on the act, too. Like we mentioned in the last episode, Robert Anton Wilson's The Illuminati trilogy turned them into a surreal satirical force behind every bizarre coincidence. Movies and TV shows from The X-Files to Eyes Wide Shut, made the idea of secret elites pulling the strings look both sinister and oddly glamorous. At this point, the Illuminati had evolved from an Enlightenment book club to a mythical boogieman, controlling everything from the stock market to your morning coffee order. Then came the Internet. And boy, does the Illuminati thrive in the digital age. Forums, YouTube videos, and social media memes turned the myth into an unstoppable juggernaut. People started seeing Illuminati symbols everywhere. The all seeing eye on the dollar bill. Celebrity hand gestures. Triangles and music videos. A triangle, guys. Geometry has never been so suspicious. The Illuminati became the go to explanation for everything weird or unexplainable. Why is Beyonce so successful? Illuminati. Why did the stock market crash. Illuminati. Why can't you find a matching sock in the laundry. Probably still Illuminati. But here's the thing. The real reason these narrative stick is because they give us a sense of control. When life feels overwhelming, when systems seem rigged and problems seem unsolvable, it's comforting to imagine that there's a secret group calling the shots. If we can expose the puppet masters, maybe we can fix everything right. Unfortunately, it's much harder to confront the truth. Most problems are complex, systemic, and not the result of a single shadowy cabal, but instead capitalist greed, lobbying and overall corruption in politics, just to name a few. At this point, the Illuminati isn't so much a real entity as it is a metaphor for mistrust in power, all a bit still overall. Misdirected, though. Whether it's corruption, government or Hollywood, people use the Illuminati to express their frustration with systems that feel opaque and out of reach. It's more of a wet blanket of an accusation than anything. And while the real Illuminati dissolved centuries ago, the myth lives on blending with other conspiracies like the New World Order and QAnon. It's become a catchall for fears of globalization, technology and social change. Basically, anything that feels like it's moving too fast or leaving people behind. So is the Illuminati real? The original Bavarian Illuminati. What's the modern version? Not so much. But the legend endures because it taps into something deeper our collective anxiety about power, control and the unknown. While it's fun to speculate, let's not lose sight of the fact that most of the world's problems aren't caused by triangles or secret handshakes. They're caused by real, tangible systems that need real solutions. If you're interested in learning more about this specific topic, I highly recommend the Illuminoid's