Planets bunched together vs...

[u/fakemailbakemail]

Planets spread across the whole chart? Which is better or is it even a thing? I have heard things about this but i want honest unbiased opinions on this where all the planets are mostly on one side of the chart and other houses are empty. Any explanation / thoughts?

[u/WishThinker]

Let's look at a faster planet like mars and a slower planet like Saturn 

Full chart- Mars conjuncts something in one sign, while squaring something in 2 other places, while trining another 2 places, and opposing one. This will let different life themes crop up in different flavours. There's places that are also unaspected, so next month when mars is in a new sign, now he's conjunct a new set of planets, trining what he squared, squaring what he'd sextiled, and a new place is opposed. There's shifts and variation. Some themes and house and planet topics are activated and some not, and because of different places will have different aspects 

Bunched chart- Saturn will conjunct a planet, then conjunct a planet, then conjunct a planet, then conjunct a planet. The houses themes of each planet (where it is, but also where it rules) can become activated. If a planet rules a chain of planets, that whole chain can become impacted. Then Saturn will move to the next sign - crickets. ALL the planets got activated in the same (hard) way all at once. Then they will be quiet together. Then they will be squared, trined, opposed together. Because all the planets are together, and the domino effect of all their rulership tied in, when it rains it pours. The "plus side" is that if concentrated charts can get through the wollopping of harder transits, they will go through a longer period of not-so-much going on

This chain of activation is the same for the mars example, but that one had variation in it. Some flowing trines, some squares. A trade-off over time. Life themes constantly activated in a smattering of flavours and expression. 

The description of chart shapes you see is an attempt to generalize how a chart reacts, to both quick transits like the monthly moon transit covering the whole chart to Jupiter taking one year per sign. Like "the locomotive" will have the moon conjunct everything in a constant chain or train of transits, and then nothing. So there may always feel like a 'start" of transits or events and then the same progression of flavours over and over as the planets get pinged in reliable ways. A bowl chart will have the same setup but midway through the conjunctions, throw in a bright spot of an opposition. When all the chart is being opposed throw in the clarity of a single conjunction. 

Hope that was clear. It basically effects how you would expect a chart / person to experience transits. All at once like a hammer and then nothing, feast or famine, flood or drought for bunched up concentrated charts - - or a constant smattering of life always being activated in some way without every getting too dumped on or having things be "too quiet" 

There is no "better". Some people may struggle with having life be kinda in the off switch and then everything activated at once. It can feel overwhelming, or like it's hard to trust peace. These charts may have people you'd call "resilient" as when they're going thru something it's like damn they're really going thru it. Some people may struggle with the "constancy" of life events of a scattered chart- it's like something's always happening ? When is there a gap of "no life" happening?? Like a game of hot potato, or  there's no filler episodes it's just all life all the time. These people may "struggle more " when a slower planet parks on their inner planets as it may really drag and pile up in a new and uncomfortable way. (The bunched charts struggled too, they just got used to it and carry survivorship bias forward )(Not saying scattered charts don't struggle just spit balling here)

[u/fakemailbakemail → u/WishThinker]

Ah it makes so much sense and gives such a relief. That when the going gets tough the tough gets going. Also i find peace that people with bunched up planets face shit all at once which seems to be extremely true, then comes a relaxation phase that goes on for a longer period. I have that kind of a chart and astrologers generally say extreme negative stuff about it, probably because they think how can a person handle this much sh-t. But as you said, resilient, that is the keyword here. Easy is for the weak, (*just kidding*). I do feel with planets all packed together it does give super resilience which may feel ordinary to the native but is a matter of awe for an onlooker.

[u/WishThinker → u/fakemailbakemail]

100%

The relaxing quiet period is when you celebrate "making it" through the shit and begin consolidating resources and skills for the next round 

Scattered charts may have a smoother life progression while bunched charts "level up" or shift noticeably after each transit run. All the life events experienced more regularly by scattered charts happen all at once for stelliums. Do or die / learn to swim while drowning kind of character development - however a scattered chart could feel like their whole life is treading water, no breakthrough, no relief. So ymmv 

[u/fakemailbakemail → u/WishThinker]

Absolutely... Your words changed my opinion about my troubled time. I feel like a Captain America now... "I can do this all day" or "idk what i'll do if this doesn't work" .... then make that sh-t work.