Studies show that engaging in ritualized behavior significantly improves outcomes on measures of grief and feelings of control, even when the person participating in the ritual has little or no belief in the ritual’s power. Just a reminder for no one in particular.
Research has revealed that, while rituals are universal across human cultures, the content and actions of those rituals vary widely even when they have the same intended purpose. This suggests that it is not the actions that matter, but that you are taking any action at all and naming it ritual. It can be an elaborate ritual with dozens of moving parts and participants, or it can be as simple as lighting a candle alone with the intent to remember someone.
The healing is in the doing.
OP did not link to a source, but the studies I have been able to find on this subject are consistent with the claims in the post:
Mourning rituals impact grief outcomes in East and Southeast Asia: A mixed-methods review - Le et al, 2025
Rituals Alleviate Grieving for Loved Ones, Lovers, And Lotteries - Norton and Gino, 2013
How funerals mediate the psycho-social impact of grief: Qualitative analysis of open-ended responses to a national survey in Japan - Becker et. al, 2022
