I think it's an interesting question to pursue the relationships between various 20th C teachers/scholars and how "original" anyone actually is. Clearly, from the evidence of the old texts, many of these ideas have been around a long time.
They have been variously emphasised independently by various modern teachers, such as Ajahns Buddhadasa and Chah, as I noted above.
Can you summarise what Dispeller of Delusion says? Unfortunately the Visuddhimagga passages are
hard to read. This may be a matter of the relatively old translation.
Visuddhimagga wrote:XVII 126. After knowing what kind of consciousness has what formations as its
condition, one should now understand how it occurs as follows.
[(2) The Occurrence of Resultant Consciousness]
Now, this resultant consciousness all occurs in two ways, namely, (a) in the
course of an individual existence (or continuity), and (b) at the rebirth-linking
[moment].
Herein, there are the two fivefold consciousnesses ((34)–(38) and (50)–(54)),
two mind elements ((39) and (55)), and root-causeless mind-consciousness
element accompanied by joy (40), that is, thirteen which occur only in the course
of an existence in the five-constituent kind of becoming.20 The remaining nineteen
occur in the three kinds of becoming, either in the course of an existence or at
rebirth-linking, as appropriate. How?
[2. (a) In the Course of an Existence]
127. Firstly, in one who has been reborn by means of either profitable-result or
unprofitable result: according as his faculties mature, so the five profitable-
resultant eye-, etc., consciousnesses occur accomplishing the respective functions
of seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and touching ((d)–(h)), contingent respectively
upon a desirable or desirable-neutral visible datum, etc., as object that has come
into the focus of the eye, etc., and having the sensitivity of the eye, etc., as [material]
support. And likewise the five unprofitable-resultant consciousnesses; the only
difference being this, that the visible data, etc., as object for these are undesirable
or undesirable-neutral. And these ten are invariable as to their door, object,
physical basis, and position [in the cognitive series], and invariable as to their
functions.
128. After that, next to the profitable-resultant eye-, etc., consciousness, the
profitable-resultant mind element (39) occurs accomplishing the function of
receiving (i), contingent upon the same object as that of the former, and having
the heart-basis as support. [547] And next after the unprofitable-resultant eye-,
etc., consciousness, the unprofitable-resultant mind element (55) occurs likewise.
But these two, while variable as to door and object, are invariable as to physical
basis and position, and invariable as to function.
129. Then next to the profitable-resultant mind element, the root-causeless
mind-consciousness element accompanied by joy (40) occurs accomplishing
the function of investigation (j), contingent upon the same object as that of the
mind element, and having the heart-basis as support. And when the object is a
vivid one in any of the six doors belonging to sense-sphere beings, usually at
the end of impulsions associated with greed it holds up the [renewal of the]
course of the life-continuum (b) by occurring either once or twice as registration
(m), having the same object as that apprehended by the impulsions—so it is said
in the Majjhima Commentary.21 But in the Abhidhamma Commentary two turns
of consciousness have been handed down with respect to registration. This
consciousness has two names, “registration” (tad-árammaóa—lit. having that object
that the preceding impulsions had) and “aftermath life-continuum” (piþþhi-
bhavaòga—see XIV
.122). It is variable as to door and object, it is invariable as to
physical basis, and it is variable as to position and function.
This, in the first place, it should be understood, is how thirteen kinds of
consciousness occur only in the course of an individual existence in the five-
constituent kind of becoming
130. As to the remaining nineteen ((41)–(49) and (56)–(65)), there is none that
does not occur as a rebirth-linking (a) appropriate to it (see §133). But in the
course of an individual existence, firstly, two, namely, profitable-resultant and
unprofitable-resultant root-causeless mind-consciousness elements ((41) and
(56)) occur accomplishing four functions, that is to say, the function of investigating
in the five doors (j) next after profitable-resultant and unprofitable-resultant
mind element, the function of registration (m) in the six doors in the way already
stated, the function of life-continuum (b) that continues after rebirth-linking given
by themselves, as long as there is no thought-arising to interrupt the life-
continuum, and lastly the function of death (n) at the end [of the course of an
existence]. And so these two are invariable as to [possession of heart-] basis, and
variable as to door, object, position, and function.
131. The eight sense-sphere consciousnesses with root-cause ((42)–(49)) occur
accomplishing three functions, namely, the function of registration (m) in the six
doors in the way already stated, the function of life-continuum (b) after rebirth-
linking given by themselves, as long as there is no thought-arising to interrupt
the life-continuum, and lastly the function of death (n) at the end. And they are
invariable as to [possession of heart-] basis, and variable as to door, position,
and function.
132. The five fine-material consciousnesses ((57)–(61)) and the four immaterial
consciousnesses ((62)–(65)) occur accomplishing two functions, namely, the
function of life-continuum (b) that continues after rebirth-linking given by
themselves, as long as there is no thought-arising to interrupt the life-continuum,
and the function of death (n) at the end. As regards these, those of the fine-
material sphere are invariable as to [possession of heart-]basis and as to their
object, and they are variable as to position and function, while the others occur
invariably without [heart-] basis, and they are invariable as to object, and variable
as to position and function.
This, in the first place, is how the thirty-twofold resultant consciousness occurs
in the course of an individual existence with formations as condition. And there
[in the course of an existence] these several formations are conditions, as kamma
condition and decisive-support condition, for this [thirty-twofold resultant
consciousness]. [548]
Footnotes:
20. For five-constituent becoming, etc., see §§253–54. “Unprofitable resultant eye-
consciousness, etc. sometimes arise even in Brahmás when undesirable visible data,
etc., come into focus” (Vism-mhþ 604); cf. §180.
21. This refers to the old Sinhalese commentary no longer extant.