I think what is missing, is a clear overview about the different entities the mind creates: dhammā, namagotta, namarupa, gati, vinnana, kammabijja, kammavinnana, kammabhava, pancakkhandha ….
As we know there are only 4 ultimate entities: rupa, citta, cetasika, Nibbana. Thus these words above are just different terminologies for “mind made things”.
The sutta says: “manañca paṭicca dhammē ca uppajjāti manōviññāṇaṃ“. The mind comes into contact with dhammā which lead to manovinnana. I use the word dhammā to include all possible mental objects. The question is, how much energy do those objects contain?
There are several pancadvara citta vithi, some of them have javana citta, some not. But all pancadvara citta vithi are followed by manodvara citta vithi with javana citta. Therefore if the mind contacts the world with any of the six senses, javana citta in manodvara citta vithi combine nama and rupa and “store the result” as pancakkhandha. If it is just an imprint of an event (vipaka vinnana) the dhammā are so fine, that we cannot speak of energy. If it is more (kamma vinnana), the dhammā contain energy, what we call kammabijja, gati … In any way it is anidassana appaṭigha rupa (=dhammā).
These dhammā are reference points for the mind, which compares the objects with them, recognizes and reacts accordingly. Recognition is colored according to the existing “old dhammā” (gati) and therefore leads to akusala PS. If the current object is a memory, old feelings are also incorporated into it and mixed with current gati. The mind refers everything perceived again and again to itself, stabilizes itself with it and also separates itself from the environment or forms an I-perception. Through the self-reference also the impression arises that one is in the possession of the truth.