The Gemara says that a body doesn't decompose if there was never any jealosy in one's lifetime. On the other hand it appears that the soul doesn't completely leave the body until it decomposes. In fact that is one of the reasons we don't use metal caskets and in Israel frequently bury without any casket.
So is it a better sign if the body decomposes immediately or better if the body keeps it form for a long time?
Kol Tuv,
Eli Turkel
Eli,
What the Gemara seems to mean is that the Soul suffers together with the body as the worms eat its flesh. That pain ceases only when the body has completely decomposed, and the soul "returns to its Creator." It is therefore essential to ensure that the corpse is able to decompose as quickly as possible, as you correctly asserted.
That only applies however, to a person whose body *needs to decompose* as an atonement for all the jealousies that he experienced throughout his life. Someone who did not experience the pangs of jealousy, and whose body is therefore not destined to decompose, has no need to fear those pains, and can literally 'rest in peace', after his death, even when bonded in some manner to the body.
be'Virkas Kol Tuv
Eliezer Chrysler.