# BRIEF-OMPHALOS-001 · source-of-truth hub · handoff to a fresh branch chat

> *Handoff per `~/Desktop/root/_principia/delegation-and-handoff.md`. This
> brief is the entire context the receiving chat needs. Read all of it
> before opening any other file.*

## The line · where this session ended

Captain (Shalaco) is mid-build on `Principia-Triskelion-Branchv001-ical`
(an iCal-sync branch of his to-do tracker). That build is **paused at
gate 0** because it kept drifting into architecture before shipping any
MVP. Captain surfaced the deeper problem: his source-of-truth files are
fractured across at least **four existing matrices and several
principia stores**, so every new branch starts with a different subset
of the canon and drifts. He named the fix: **OMPHALOS** — a dashboard
that holds the canon in one place and emits a clean brief for whatever
the next branch is.

The iCal branch will resume *after* OMPHALOS ships and emits a
clean iCal brief. Don't touch the iCal branch from this chat.

## Bedrock · read these in this order before any other file

| # | Path | Why first |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | `~/Desktop/root/_principia/executing-as-architecting.md` | operating mode · execute / architect / document in parallel · "find the existing grammar before inventing" · "never ship raw markdown — pipe through the viewer skin" |
| 2 | `~/Desktop/root/_principia/delegation-and-handoff.md` | the protocol that produced THIS brief · same protocol applies when OMPHALOS later emits its own handoff |
| 3 | `~/Desktop/root/Principia-Triskelion-Branchv001-ical/_principium-candidate-mvp-first.md` | the bedrock catch named this session · **ship a runnable MVP first, govern after** · violations triggered three captain steers in one session |
| 4 | `~/Desktop/root/Principia-Triskelion-Branchv001-ical/_principium-candidate-three-rings.md` | the three-front-files discipline (ASK / BUILD / DRIFT in arms-reach, re-read at every gate) |
| 5 | `~/Desktop/root/Automaton Architecture/Wildfuturesadvancementgroup.com/BACKBONE/RUNMAN.md` | the Annex's what-goes-where convention — run its decision tree before placing any new file |
| 6 | `~/Desktop/root/Automaton Architecture/Wildfuturesadvancementgroup.com/BACKBONE/Automaton Architecture Annex/audit/INVENTORY-GENEALOGY.md` | the canonical example of an Annex audit doc · pattern to follow for OMPHALOS's own genealogy |
| 7 | `~/Desktop/seeds/PURUSHA/README.md` | the phasing framework · six verbs · **user gates between Redefine and Refine are not optional** |

Cited principles you will name when you use them: **R0** (iterative
non-destructive — nothing gets deleted, prior shapes survive beside
new ones) · **P2** (see structure before adding) · **P3** (point, don't
duplicate) · **MO9** (delegate down to artifact — the convention is
visible in the rendered output) · **MO11** (every zone has a RUNMAN).

## The ask · captain's words verbatim

> *"do we have a source truth hub where we are in an html showing a
> source matrix of truths added and when so we don't keep fracturing
> these? hand off a prompt to collect and symlink them then put them
> into a matrix then review the matrix against the request and the
> sources and present an iterative build to present me with theme
> choices from the library and functions yeah. the first pass could be
> a dashboard that names itself source truth in a cool name i approve
> and makes a folder and serves up a a page after it has phased the
> iterative design prompt and collects all the parts i can build from
> it reviews and proposes categories for my approval and then i click
> a bunch of boxes and write a prompt and out comes the md for the
> next branch to build fuck yeah"*

Name approved by captain: **OMPHALOS** (Greek: the world-navel stone,
the omphalos at Delphi was *the* one). Plural is **OMPHALOI** — each
project's source-of-truth hub is its omphalos; the set is the omphaloi.
The naming convention should accommodate "many navels."

## Inputs · the existing fracture, by absolute path

These are the FOUR+ matrices/canons that currently coexist and that
OMPHALOS exists to reconcile. Do **not** add a fifth.

| Path | What it is | Size / scope |
|---|---|---|
| `~/Desktop/root/Automaton Architecture/_reference-library/matrix.json` | the biggest existing matrix · paired with `reference-library.html` viewer | 275k · ~unknown entry count |
| `~/Desktop/root/Automaton Architecture/_reference-library/reference-library.html` | the existing viewer over matrix.json | 162k · already a working dashboard |
| `~/Desktop/root/Automaton Architecture/_reference-library/build_library.py` | the script that builds the matrix | 49k |
| `~/Desktop/seeds/PURUSHA/reference.json` | "54 entries · 31 kinds · 10 buckets — parsed from /root/Meta-Map.html" per `seeds/PURUSHA/README.md` | 23k |
| `~/Desktop/seeds/PURUSHA/reference.html` | PURUSHA's reference matrix viewer | the corpus reference matrix viewer per the seed README |
| `~/Desktop/root/Meta-Map.html` | the apparent source the PURUSHA reference.json was parsed from | 66k |
| `~/Desktop/root/_principia/*.md` | the principia store — `executing-as-architecting.md`, `delegation-and-handoff.md` | project-agnostic principia |
| `~/Desktop/root/Principia-Triskelion-Branchv001-ical/_principium-candidate-*.md` | two candidates captured this session, not yet promoted | three-rings · mvp-first |
| `~/Desktop/root/_ops/*.md` | ops folder — contents to be discovered | ? |
| `~/Desktop/root/_ptah/cyrelium-md-viewer.html` | the canonical sibling MD viewer skin · DO NOT REINVENT | 21k |
| `~/Desktop/root/Automaton Architecture/Wildfuturesadvancementgroup.com/MASTER-CONTROL/master-control.html` | the canonical operating-console template per executing-as-architecting.md | TOTK-GUI skin with hold-Space radial verbs |
| `~/Desktop/root/Automaton Architecture/.../BACKBONE/Automaton Architecture Annex/audit/*.md` | the Annex audit-class precedent set (`SCRIPT-MATRIX.md`, `INVENTORY-GENEALOGY.md`, `PARTS-INDEX.md`, `master-batch-matrix.md`, `data-compliance-audit.md`) | the genre OMPHALOS audit docs fit into |
| `~/Desktop/root/_ops/lexicon/EXISTING.md` | seed of the **existing terminology** reference library (Latin / Greek / Sanskrit / English-craft) — what each term meant before this work and how this work uses it | required input · OMPHALOS absorbs it as canon |
| `~/Desktop/root/_ops/lexicon/COINAGE.md` | seed of the **coinage** reference library — terms minted in/for this work (drift names, principia coinages, captain's vocabulary, convention coinages, this-session-specific coinages) | required input · OMPHALOS absorbs it as canon |

**A fifth matrix.json** was created by the prior chat at
`~/Desktop/root/Principia-Triskelion-Branchv001-ical/_source/matrix.json`
during the iCal-branch drift. That file is a known drift artifact and
should be folded into OMPHALOS's reconciliation pass, not preserved as
a separate canon.

## The transformation · what OMPHALOS does

Six moves, in order, each gated as named. Use PURUSHA's verbs literally.

### ◆ Define
Restate the captain's ask in one paragraph after reading the bedrock
above. Surface anything in the ask that has more than one defensible
reading.

### ◇ Light Audit
Width-first crawl of `~/Desktop/root/` and `~/Desktop/seeds/` for:
`*.md`, `matrix.json`, `reference.json`, `*-matrix*.md`,
`*-GENEALOGY.md`, `*-INDEX.md`, `*-LOG.md`, `_principium-*.md`,
`*-PRINCIPIUM.md`. Build a flat catalog: path · kind · last-modified ·
size · 1-line gloss. **No deep reads yet.** This catalog is itself the
proof OMPHALOS works — if it shows the fracture honestly the captain
will recognize it.

### ↺ Redefine · USER GATE
Write `OMPHALOS/THE-ENQUIRY.md` (one short page) restating the core
question with the audit in hand. Stop. Captain reads through the
viewer (NOT raw .md) and confirms before any code moves. Per
`_principium-candidate-three-rings.md`, this gate is non-negotiable.

### ▸ Deep Audit
After captain confirms: full reads of 2–3 picks. Likely picks
(captain confirms):
1. `_reference-library/build_library.py` — what does it already do that
   OMPHALOS shouldn't redo?
2. `_reference-library/reference-library.html` + `seeds/PURUSHA/reference.html`
   — what's the existing viewer grammar?
3. The Annex `audit/` precedent — what file shape does OMPHALOS's
   own audit doc need?

### ✻ Refine · USER GATE
Propose categories (the "buckets" the captain mentioned). Map every
catalog entry to a category. Write `OMPHALOS/CATEGORIES.md`. Stop.
Captain reviews categories before any UI ships.

### ⌬ Surface
Build the runnable artifact. **This is the MVP — ship it before any
more governance docs land.** The artifact is:

- A folder at `~/Desktop/root/OMPHALOS/` (top-level entity per
  Annex precedent; this serves every entity so it's its own omphalos).
- `index.html` adapted from the canonical `master-control.html` template
  (per executing-as-architecting.md's named seed) OR from
  `_reference-library/reference-library.html` if the captain prefers
  the existing skin — surface the choice at Refine.
- `matrix.json` — the reconciled canon, built from the catalog with
  R0-style provenance (every row records which source matrix(es) it
  came from). The existing matrices stay where they are; OMPHALOS
  *points* at them, doesn't move them (P3 — point, don't duplicate).
- A `symlinks/` subfolder where every catalogued file gets symlinked
  by category, so the captain can navigate the canon without leaving
  OMPHALOS.
- A `RUNMAN.md` for OMPHALOS itself — what goes where when adding new
  truths (MO11). Written using the Annex BACKBONE/RUNMAN.md as the
  template.
- An audit doc `audit/OMPHALOS-GENEALOGY.md` following the
  `INVENTORY-GENEALOGY.md` pattern — newest-to-oldest walk of the
  fracture, idea-axis + physical-axis, shattered-pieces enumerated.
- A **"compose brief" feature in the dashboard**: captain checks
  boxes against rows in the matrix, picks a theme and a function set
  from the library, writes a prompt in a textarea, hits Export → out
  comes `BRIEF-{NEXTNAME}-001.md` to `~/Desktop/root/_ops/` ready
  for the next branch chat. This is the literal feature the captain
  asked for.

## The deliverable

When done, the captain should see:

1. `~/Desktop/root/OMPHALOS/` exists with all of the above.
2. Opening `OMPHALOS/index.html` (or running its `Launch.command`)
   renders the dashboard with every existing truth findable from one
   page.
3. The captain can compose and export a brief for the next branch
   (the immediate test: export the iCal-branch brief so the parked
   `Principia-Triskelion-Branchv001-ical` build can resume cleanly).
4. `OMPHALOS/THE-ASK.md` carries the captain's verbatim prompt(s)
   that produced this branch (this brief is one of them).
5. `OMPHALOS/THE-BUILD.md` records every artifact built, ✓ / ~ / ✗
   per `_principium-candidate-three-rings.md`.
6. `OMPHALOS/THE-DRIFT.md` records any drifts caught during the
   build, naming the failure mode + structural placement.

## The acceptance test · before you declare done

- Open the dashboard. Can you find each of the four existing matrices
  from one page in ≤ 2 clicks? If no → not done.
- Export a brief for the iCal branch by clicking through the dashboard.
  Does the emitted MD contain bedrock + inputs + transformation +
  deliverable + acceptance test + report request? If any section is
  missing → not done.
- Run the captain's `~/Desktop/root/_principia/` discoverability test:
  open `OMPHALOS/index.html` and verify both
  `executing-as-architecting.md` and `delegation-and-handoff.md`
  appear as canon entries with at-least their full text linked.
- Count out-of-scope artifacts in `THE-BUILD.md`. If > 20% are ✗,
  per the three-rings principium, downscale and re-gate.

## Lexicon hygiene rule (captain-surfaced during brief-writing)

OMPHALOS's matrix schema **must** carry a per-row field
`lexicon: existing | coinage | both` (the third value for cases like
OMPHALOS itself — the *word* is existing Greek, the *usage* is coinage).
The dashboard surfaces a filter for it. The split between
`EXISTING.md` and `COINAGE.md` is preserved as separate files inside
OMPHALOS — they are not merged into a single lexicon.

Promotion rule: a coinage row migrates to existing when it acquires
prior-art outside this Desktop (captain-confirmed). The original
coinage row stays (R0) with a "promoted on {date}" note.

Attribution rule: every coinage row carries who-said-the-word-first
(captain · Claude · prior-session). The captain wants to know what
*he* coined vs what *Claude* coined vs what was already in the tree.

## Drifts to watch for (from THIS session's catches — don't repeat them)

| Drift | Catch |
|---|---|
| **Foundation-spiral** | The principium-candidate-mvp-first names this exactly. Ship the MVP dashboard with the categories captain approved; write the governance *around* the working artifact, not before. |
| **Corpus-glamour** | PURUSHA + Annex + _principia are reference material, not deliverable style. Every artifact you write must answer the captain's verbatim ask above, not the framework's aesthetic. |
| **Existing-grammar miss** | The Annex viewer exists. The cyrelium viewer exists. The master-control template exists. The reference-library viewer exists. **Do not invent a fifth viewer skin.** Pick one and adapt. |
| **Four-matrices fracture** | The very thing OMPHALOS exists to fix. Do not add a fifth canonical matrix — reconcile the four into one, with R0-compliant provenance back to the originals. |
| **Raw-markdown handoff** | Captain reads through the viewer, not raw .md. Every deliverable in this branch must be piped through the chosen skin before being surfaced. |
| **User-gate skip** | PURUSHA names two user gates (Redefine, Refine). Captain caught the prior chat plowing through them. Don't. Stop, wait, ship after confirmation. |

## Report request

When you reach the next user gate, **emit a sub-250-word report**
in the chat with:

- What shipped (paths).
- What's gated on captain (specifics, with the question framed).
- Open holds (named, with proposed dispositions).
- One-line: which named drift, if any, you noticed yourself starting
  toward and corrected. If none, say none.

No hedging. No apology blocks. The captain reads tight reports.

## Provenance

- Session that produced this brief: cowork `eb854b06-af70-4b3a-8cdd-7a28b6077777`
  on 2026-05-21.
- Captain prompt that named OMPHALOS: *"OMPHALOS"* (after
  Latin / Greek / Hybrid options were presented, plural-form discussion
  surfaced "many navels" intuition).
- Predecessor session that produced `_principium-candidate-mvp-first.md`:
  same cowork session. The principium was named in the postmortem of
  three captain steers in one session (gate viewer · foundations cited
  but not used · "where is my usable mvp").
- Pattern for next brief: when OMPHALOS exports the iCal brief, file it
  as `~/Desktop/root/_ops/BRIEF-ICAL-RESUME-001.md` (or whatever the
  captain names the iCal entity in the dashboard).