ABSTRACT
The conclusion presents that, in many societies, death is spread out in time. The souls of the dead remain earthbound for a while and the bereaved are expected to continue to relate to them. Most of the beliefs and rituals attending death and bereavement seem to meet the emotional needs of their adherents. Some counsellors give therapy when it would be more appropriate to give explanation and reassurance of normality and to reserve psychiatric diagnosis and treatment for the minority who meet established criteria of illness. Humanists reject the possibility of conscious life after death, but secularists are agnostic on this issue and most people think that there must be something beyond this life. Systematic cross-cultural studies are urgently needed if the people are to explore the reasons why some cultures seem to inhibit grief without suffering lasting harm while others pay a high price.
