English: To the Meriam Mir people of Mer (Murray Island) in the eastern Torres Strait, bright meteors are an important element of death customs and beliefs. We draw from a combination of ethno-historic studies and interviews with Meriam elders to understand the role of bright meteors (Maier) in Torres Strait traditions relating to spiritual elements of death rites using a framework of symbolic anthropology. We find that bright meteors serve as symbolic representations of death and mortuary purification practices and show how the physical properties of meteors are incorporated in ritual, belief, spirituality, and custom. Meriam Mir: Meriamgize maier oditautlare nade eud onagri a mokakalam eud kerker. Kemerkemer daratkapda kikem kerkerira pardar, dorge a oka nako Torres Straitge eud tonar bud ueplare. Debe bibi maieride onatager eud ia onagri a nalu tonar able maierira seri/kakaper a dum able tonar umerem a simir akedrem.
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