hereorthere- you say “If his soul needs clensing that could have been done inbetween lives and seems wasteful during a life where he has no clue.”
Cleansing in between lives would be hell. There are many stories of souls who chose to go down onto this world again as a better alternative to hell.
While we are on this world, it seems as if this is “real”, however at the end of our lifetime we see it was only temporary, and it is the world of truth that is eternal and real. And the more suffering we have during our transient lifetime, the cleaner our souls become and the closer we can be to G-d in the real world. And that is the ultimate pleasure.
I know the concept is difficult to swallow, but it is something I tell myself during trying times and it helps me alot.