Question: What happens to very unaspiring souls that don't want to spend a long time in the soul's world after they die? Can they reincarnate again right away?

Sri Chinmoy: When they go back to the soul’s world, common human beings usually take about six years to reincarnate. Some don’t even take six years. Ordinary human beings who are absolutely non-aspiring, who live an animal life, may not be inclined to go the soul’s world. They want to enjoy the physical world, the pleasure-life. After six months or even three months, they may take incarnation again. In this way they progress a little faster, if you want to call it progress, because they start their journey very soon. They were leading an animal life, a most unaspiring life. Then for three or four months they took rest in the other world before coming back again.

Usually it is the good souls, great souls, that take rest in the soul’s world for only six or eight months or a year. Ordinary souls take six, eight or ten years. But sometimes an ordinary soul, not with tremendous animal propensities, but ordinary — that is, not very high or very aspiring and, at the same time, not very bad, with a little aspiration but not much — sometimes these souls want to come back to earth very quickly. If it is God’s Will, or if any spiritual Master intervenes, then they can come back sooner. These human souls are not of the lowest; they are of the common run. They have desires, earthly desires, and they are tired of heavenly life. They go to Heaven, and after two or three years they become tired of heavenly life; they are fond of earthly life.

Our Sarama had a mother who died not quite three years ago. Her mother kindly descended a few months ago. Her mother was tired of heavenly life, and she was able to descend because she had a Guru and her Guru did her a favour. She has come back very soon, not because she has led an animal life, but because she was aspiring slowly, like the Indian bullock-cart speed. She felt that here on earth she would be happy. Again, there are other souls among our departed disciples who want to come back as soon as possible, not to take part in our mission, but to lead an ordinary earthly life. So in some cases my compassion did not work. Only in Trishna’s case I have offered my help. But it is good to take a few years’ rest. Here on earth we work so hard. We deserve some rest in Heaven.