>>49191234
>I haven't read all that many doujins myself, do you have any recommendations from Hisona's works?
All of them! But in terms of relevancy to subjects at hand I would point out to following:
Idle talking Idols ( 形代閑話) is a straightforward example of Hisona delving more into folklore and religious background of Touhou. It's almost a lecture, which considering the plot isn't that surprising.
Drown in Nostalgia (ノスタルジアの埋没) is another example of taking from actual mythology and historical events to create a basis for the plot, but this time it is more eventful. It deals with Kutaka and her longing after Outside World worshipers. Funnily, this one was posted and translated on danbooru alongside >>46801995, I remember reading both at the time.
Probably the most interesting one would be however Let Dreaming Dogs Lie (ゆめゆめ夢見ることなかれ). It is similar to Drown in Nostalgia in both borrowing and having a plot around things borrowed, this time dealing with Seija and her having internal identity crisis thanks to amanojaku being tied and muddled with many different beings in folklore. Notably, Ame-no-Sagume connection is also mentioned, with doujin being from May of 2014 (full version of LoLK is from August 2015). This alone shows some knowledge about subject from Hisona, but it gets somewhat chilly near the end, when Satori, who was asked to help Seija, mentions that they (2hus, within narration) may end up calling down Ame-no-Sagume by accident if the situation with Seija won't be properly resolved. This doujin has a sequel too, Enchant the Left (左を魅よ), which is a nice example of trying to tie together Touhou and various myths into single, coherent narration, quite succeeding in my opinion.
>>49192637
>it's more like the Divine Comedy
Yes, that's a good comparison. But it immediately makes think about Tractatus de Purgatorio Sancti Patricii from later part of 12th century. A story about Irish knight traveling through purgatory, it is said to influence Dante and Divine Comedy, but it also impacted the discourse around concept of purgatory in Catholic Church, as it was around that time when theological debate was fleshing out and solidifying the concept (Orthodox Church and most Protestant denomination reject the idea of purgatory).
I mention this mostly because there is a back-and-forth between art and religious beliefs throughout the ages, oldest that I remember being Hesiod and Homer impacting Greek beliefs in Hellenistic period. As the doctrine of particular religion becomes more and more intricate, it becomes less likely to be influenced by popular art-pieces. However, with how light-weight is Shinto in this regard, I wouldn't be surprised if an actual change in beliefs caused by Touhou happens one day. But at the same time, as >>49191234 pointed out, ZUN in turn might have been influenced by religious debate at that time too.
>>49216112
>Fudo Myo-o's seed syllable
So it could be esoteric Buddhism or Shugendo representative among the orbs, he has quite a career in both.
>>49228672
>Letty
Letty supposedly slumbers outside of winter, so she might be unresponsive. Or maybe to the contrary, spending time in Dream World will let her come easier? I wish you best luck.

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When did you become aware of the esoteric elements surrounding Touhou?