The pacifist turn: an episode of mystic illumination in the autobiography of Bertrand Russell

On the nature of the oceanic experience

It is postulated that consciousness is not simply an organ of perception, but that it possesses a structure, or organization, despite its enormous fluidity. In support of these views, the oceanic experience is explored. It demonstrates the impact, on this state of consciousness, of the subject's values and culture. Like the oceanic experience, every state of consciousness--what is in awareness at any given time--is a complex phenomenon that derives from all aspects of the psyche, including the subject's value system and the influences of his culture.