In kakushi nenbutsu, "honzon" (principal image of Buddha) is "Kobo Daishi" (a posthumous title of the priest Kukai), "Kogyo Daishi" (a posthumous title of the priest Kakuban), or Shinran, and the influence of the Shingon Sect of Esoteric Buddhism is seen in its rituals.
隠し念仏では、本尊は弘法大師（空海）、興教大師（覚鑁）、親鸞とされ、真言密教の影響が見られる。