eighteen centers of Buddhist learning (Pure Land sect, Kanto region)
Historical term referring to the eighteen major seminaries or academies of the Jōdo (Pure Land) sect in the Kantō area during the Edo period. Primarily encountered in texts on Japanese Buddhist history.
During the Edo period, the eighteen centers of Buddhist learning of the Pure Land sect were the main centers of doctrinal study in the Kanto region.
浄土宗 is the Pure Land sect itself, while 十八檀林 refers specifically to its eighteen major seminaries in the Kanto region.
eighteen centers of Buddhist learning (Pure Land sect, Kanto region)
十八 (eighteen) + 檀林 (Buddhist seminary, from Sanskrit 'dāna' via Chinese). The term 檀林 originally referred to a grove where alms were given, later extended to mean a place of Buddhist learning.