They worship Lucifer. They are trying to keep the human race subjugated and enslaved for their own personal gain. That's it. That's their end game. When you boil it down, it's really that simple. There's a deeper element to it, though. The Illuminati believe in the fundamental ugliness of mankind. They believe we are a doomed and forsaken species, and the Luciferian ideology they follow encourages them to exploit innocents because, in their eyes, we deserve it. We are stupid and easily manipulated cattle to them & therefore deserve whatever we get. Seriously. They believe that their value as beings comes from their alliance with Lucifer, the light-giver. Alex Jones is a good place to start if you want to know more about this. He's a crazy son of a bitch and he, ahem, [i]exaggerates[/i] pretty often (in fact, he is controlled opposition), but there's a kernel of truth in what he says and he's good at getting people to think in an alternative way. Just listen with a critical ear & don't accept anything he says at face value.

What is the root of these beliefs? Where do they come from?

Great question. We don't really know. The occult stretches back into antiquity beyond the reach of the historical record, but it has always preached the same values and taught the same themes. Today's occult is directly descended from the ancient cults of Babylon if you trace it back that far. Satan = Lucifer = Moloch = Horus = Baal = Mithra = the moon god Allah (from which the Islamic Allah was derived). They are all the same entity expressed differently through different cultures and time periods. The Illuminati appropriated these occult beliefs and practices for its own purposes in order to seize as much power as it could. They legitimately believe they are in communion with the dark entity & that their power stems from the accumulation of the life energy of others.

How come they don't gravitate towards the light? What would make you place your faith in negativity? What would make you want to create more of it?