A time to live, a time to grieve: patterns and processes of mourning among the Yolngu of Australia.

Anthropological studies of mortuary ceremonies have focused primarily on their social and structural correlates and functions. Little attention has been given to their role in facilitating the expression and resolution of grief by the bereaved. The elaborate and extended mortuary rites of the people of northeastern Arnhem Land, Australia (the "Murngin") have several characteristics which promote and structure the mourning process and facilitate the full reintegration of the bereaved into the social life of the community.