I want to carefully clarify that this means that the “vi mode” is command mode.
The “vi mode” is independent from the Obsidian “mode” for the pane.
vi modes: Command mode, Edit mode
Obsidian Modes: Preview mode, Edit mode
I am not suggesting any changes be made to the handling of Obsidian Modes.
Rather the request is to ensure the “vi mode” for a newly opened file in an existing pane is set to Command mode.