Start Day

This returns a vault-relative path like 0_Inbox/2026-04-11.md. Extract the containing folder (0_Inbox/) and today's date.

List everything in that folder:

obsidian files vault=ObsidianPersonal folder="0_Inbox"

Filter to files matching the YYYY-MM-DD.md pattern where the date is before today. Sort ascending (oldest first). These are unprocessed prior notes.

If none exist, skip to Phase 2.

Step 1b — Process each prior note (oldest first, no pausing between notes)

Repeat Steps 1b-i through 1b-v for every unprocessed prior note. The only exception to no-pausing is an ambiguous 2_Areas folder match (see Step 1b-iii).

Track for each note: count of todos, avoidance items, idea stubs, learnings filed. Carry the extracted action items forward in memory — they feed directly into Phase 2.

Step 1b-i — Read, resolve wikilinks, and classify

obsidian read vault=ObsidianPersonal path="0_Inbox/YYYY-MM-DD.md"

If the note is empty or contains only a template skeleton with no substantive content, skip to Step 1b-v (archiving).

Wikilink context override — extract all [[...]] references from the note text. For each link name, search 1_Projects/ and 2_Areas/ in parallel:

obsidian search vault=ObsidianPersonal folder="1_Projects" query="<link name>" format=json
obsidian search vault=ObsidianPersonal folder="2_Areas" query="<link name>" format=json

If a match is found in either folder and is not already in the project context map, read the matched file and any sibling #agent-context-tagged files in that folder, then add them to the map. This surfaces projects and areas referenced intentionally but outside the 14-day auto-load window.

Classify every meaningful item into one of five types (most specific match wins):

Items under ## Today's Priorities are hard todos by default (unchecked only — skip - [x]).

Project attribution — for each hard todo, fuzzy-match its text against project names in the project context map. A direct name mention, a wikilink to the project, or a domain clearly owned by one project all count. Tag each todo internally with its matched project, or mark it "unattributed" if no match.

Step 1b-ii — Create idea stubs in 0_Inbox

For each idea fragment:

obsidian create vault=ObsidianPersonal path="0_Inbox/Idea - <Short Title>.md" content="---\ntags:\n  - idea\n  - stub\nsource: \"[[YYYY-MM-DD]]\"\n---\n\n<raw thought, verbatim or lightly cleaned>" silent

Keep <Short Title> to 4–6 words. Don't expand or elaborate.

Step 1b-iii — Append avoidance items to Avoidance Radar

For each avoidance item, first read the Radar and fuzzy-match to avoid duplicates:

obsidian read vault=ObsidianPersonal path="2_Areas/Personal Knowledge Management/Avoidance Radar.md"

If not already present, append:

obsidian append vault=ObsidianPersonal path="2_Areas/Personal Knowledge Management/Avoidance Radar.md" content="\n- [ ] <item> — *first noted: YYYY-MM-DD*"

If the file doesn't exist, create it first:

obsidian create vault=ObsidianPersonal path="2_Areas/Personal Knowledge Management/Avoidance Radar.md" content="---\ntags:\n  - agent-context\n---\n\nThings that keep coming up but keep getting deferred. Reviewed weekly.\n" silent

Step 1b-iv — File learnings into 2_Areas

For each learning, list 2_Areas/ subfolders and match semantically:

obsidian files vault=ObsidianPersonal folder="2_Areas"

Clear match: proceed without asking. No match: suggest top 2 candidates or offer to create a new folder — this is the only time to pause. Once answered, continue.

# Append to existing note
obsidian append vault=ObsidianPersonal file="<Note Name>" content="\n---\n\n<learning content>\n\nSource: [[YYYY-MM-DD]]"

# Or create a new note
obsidian create vault=ObsidianPersonal path="2_Areas/<Subfolder>/<Title>.md" content="---\ntags:\n  - <tag>\n---\n\n<learning content>\n\nSource: [[YYYY-MM-DD]]" silent

Step 1b-v — Write Distillation, navigation footer, archive

Distillation — append before archiving:

obsidian append vault=ObsidianPersonal path="0_Inbox/YYYY-MM-DD.md" content="## Distillation\n\n**Day in brief:** <1–2 sentence synthesis of the day's tone, main themes, and energy — drawn from project context where applicable, not just the surface text>\n\n**Action items:**\n\n*[[Project Name]]:*\n- [ ] <item> *(<brief context informed by project state>)*\n\n*Unattributed:*\n- [ ] <item> *(<brief context>)*\n\n**Avoiding** *(added to Avoidance Radar):*\n- <item, or omit block if none>\n\n**Ideas stubbed to Inbox:**\n- [[Idea - <title>]]\n\n**Filed to 2_Areas:**\n- [[<Area Note>]] ← <learning summary>"

Omit any subsection with nothing to show. For Action items: group todos under their attributed project as a subheading. If all todos are unattributed, skip the grouping and list flat. If only one project is represented, skip the project subheading and annotate each item inline with *(→ [[Project Name]])*. Omit the Unattributed heading if everything is attributed.

Navigation footer:

obsidian append vault=ObsidianPersonal path="0_Inbox/YYYY-MM-DD.md" content="\n\n---\n← [[PREV-DATE]] | → [[NEXT-DATE]]"

• PREV-DATE: calendar day before this note's date
• NEXT-DATE: placeholder — will resolve when that note is processed

Archive:

obsidian move vault=ObsidianPersonal path="0_Inbox/YYYY-MM-DD.md" to="4_Archive/Daily Notes/YYYY-MM/YYYY-MM-DD.md"

Back-fill the predecessor's forward link:

obsidian append vault=ObsidianPersonal path="4_Archive/Daily Notes/PREV-YYYY-MM/PREV-DATE.md" content="\n\n---\n← [[PREV-PREV-DATE]] | → [[YYYY-MM-DD]]"

Skip if the predecessor doesn't exist in the archive.

Phase 2 — Prime today's note

Step 2a — Create today's note

obsidian daily vault=ObsidianPersonal

Creates today's note from the template if it doesn't exist.

Step 2b — Load context

Run all reads in parallel before any analysis:

# Daily quote source
obsidian read vault=ObsidianPersonal path="2_Areas/Quotes.md"

# Inspiration file index
obsidian search vault=ObsidianPersonal query="tag:#inspiration" format=json

# Life Domains manifest
obsidian read vault=ObsidianPersonal path="2_Areas/Life Domains.md"

# Avoidance Radar (freshly updated by Phase 1)
obsidian read vault=ObsidianPersonal path="2_Areas/Personal Knowledge Management/Avoidance Radar.md"

# Project Index modification times for staleness check (vault API — portable, no hardcoded path)
obsidian eval vault=ObsidianPersonal code="JSON.stringify(app.vault.getFiles().filter(f => f.path.startsWith('1_Projects/') && f.name === 'Index.md').map(f => ({path: f.path, mtime: f.stat.mtime})).sort((a,b) => a.mtime - b.mtime))"

# Agent-context files in 1_Projects modified within 14 days
# obsidian CLI has no date filter — find used here to overcome that limitation
# obsidian eval prefixes output with "=> "; strip it before using as a path
VAULT_PATH=$(obsidian eval vault=ObsidianPersonal code="app.vault.adapter.basePath" | sed 's/^=> //')
find "$VAULT_PATH/1_Projects" -name "*.md" -mtime -14 | xargs grep -l "agent-context" 2>/dev/null

Read each file from the last command and build the project context map: project name (from path or frontmatter title) → key details (goal, current status, any constraints or blockers noted). This map is shared across Phase 1 and Phase 2.

Rolled-over todos:

• If Phase 1 processed any notes: use the action items already in memory from those Distillations — skip the archive re-read.
• If Phase 1 had nothing to process: list archived notes and read the most recent one to extract rolled-over todos:

obsidian files vault=ObsidianPersonal folder="4_Archive/Daily Notes"
obsidian read vault=ObsidianPersonal path="4_Archive/Daily Notes/YYYY-MM/YYYY-MM-DD.md"

Find ## Distillation → **Action items:**, extract every - [ ] line verbatim.

Recurring todo escalation — before building priorities, check for todos stuck across 3+ days. Read the two archived Distillations immediately preceding the source note and extract their unchecked - [ ] action items. Any todo text that fuzzy-matches a rolled-over todo in both prior notes has been deferred for 3+ consecutive days — escalate it: append to Avoidance Radar (Step 1b-iii format, first noted: = today's date) and remove it from rolled-over todos. Skip this check if fewer than 2 prior archived Distillations exist.

Step 2b-ii — Pick today's quote and inspiration

Quote — from Quotes.md, extract every line beginning with - . Strip the leading - . Use today's date as a seed: take the day-of-year (1–366), mod by the number of quotes, and select that line. Same quote all day if the skill runs twice.

Store as QUOTE_CONTENT — the raw line text including attribution and any [[wikilink]].

Inspiration — from the #inspiration search results, apply the same day-of-year mod against the list to pick one file deterministically.

Read just the first non-frontmatter, non-heading line of that file (skip --- blocks and lines starting with #). This is the teaser sentence.

Store as INSPIRATION_PATH (vault-relative path) and INSPIRATION_TEASER (the first prose line).

Step 2c — Build PRIORITIES_CONTENT and CONTEXT_CONTENT

Rolled-over todos — first items in PRIORITIES_CONTENT, verbatim from Distillation.

Avoidance Radar items — for each - [ ] line, extract item text and first noted: date. Calculate days elapsed from today.

Sort oldest first. Append after rolled-over todos.

Domain-aware nudge — from Life Domains ## Current Context and ## Life Domains, identify any seasonally active or high-priority domain. If none of its concerns appear in rolled-over todos or surfaced Radar items, add one soft prompt at the bottom:

- [ ] [Domain name]: anything to move forward today?

Maximum one nudge. Skip if active domains are already represented.

Stale project flag — from the find output, if any Index.md is 30+ days old, pick the least stale one and add:

- [ ] [Project name]: no activity in N days — worth a push?

Skip if a rolled-over todo already references that project. Skip if everything is under 30 days.

Cap — if PRIORITIES_CONTENT exceeds 6 items, remove from the bottom: youngest Radar items first, then domain nudge, then stale flag. Never drop rolled-over todos.

CONTEXT_CONTENT:

• Line 1 (always): One sentence from Life Domains ## Current Context — the single most time-sensitive or seasonally relevant point.
• Line 2 (conditional): Only if any Radar item is 14+ days old: Overdue: [item name] (N days), [item name] (N days). Omit entirely if nothing qualifies.

Step 2d — Write to today's note

obsidian daily:path vault=ObsidianPersonal

Full filesystem path: $VAULT_PATH/ + returned path (reuse the VAULT_PATH variable from Step 2b, already stripped of the => prefix).

Fill daily spark — the template includes the callout scaffold with placeholder comments. Replace each placeholder:

• Find <!-- quote --> → replace with [QUOTE_CONTENT]
• Find <!-- inspiration --> → replace with [[INSPIRATION_FILENAME]] — [INSPIRATION_TEASER]

INSPIRATION_FILENAME is the bare note name (no path, no .md) for the wikilink. The *italics* wrapper is already in the template around the quote placeholder. If either placeholder is not found (skill already ran today), skip that replacement silently.

Fill Today's Priorities — find this exact string and replace:

## Today's Priorities

## Morning Context

→

## Today's Priorities

[PRIORITIES_CONTENT]

## Morning Context

Fill Morning Context — find this exact string and replace:

## Morning Context

## Brain Dump

→

## Morning Context

[CONTEXT_CONTENT]

## Brain Dump

Make both edits sequentially. If either pattern is not found (sections already have content), skip that edit silently.

Phase 3 — Summary

If Phase 1 processed any notes, show the processing table:

One row per note. Show — for columns with nothing found. If a note was empty and skipped processing, note that in the row.

If Phase 1 had nothing to process, no summary needed — the note is ready silently.