# Keshav Three Pass

> Tactic: Read one paper by Keshav's three-pass method — a shallow skim, a contribution-grasping full read, then a deep virtual re-implementation. Use when the goal is understanding a paper rather than extracting a fixed schema.

- Skill: `yogsoth-ai/keshav-three-pass` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add yogsoth-ai/keshav-three-pass`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/yogsoth-ai/keshav-three-pass/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: yogsoth-ai (https://skillmd.com/u/yogsoth-ai)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/yogsoth-ai/keshav-three-pass

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# Keshav Three-Pass

Read one paper in three passes of increasing depth. The outputs accumulate as
prose rather than fixed fields; use a different tactic when cross-paper
alignment matters more than understanding.

## Orchestration Pattern

1. Call `paper-fetch` with `paper_ref`. Stop on `not_found`. Create
   `context/papers/<dir>/keshav-three-pass/` on success.
2. Call `first-pass-skim` with `source_path` and `meta_path`. Write
   `01-first-pass-skim.md`, recording `read_deeper` in frontmatter.
3. If `read_deeper` is false, stop by default. Continue only on explicit
   caller override and record `gate_overridden: true`.
4. Call `second-pass-grasp` with the paths and `skim_notes`; write
   `02-second-pass-grasp.md`.
5. Call `third-pass-deep-read` with the paths and `grasp_summary`; write
   `03-third-pass-deep-read.md`.

Do not collapse pass 3 into a recap of pass 2. It must surface implicit
assumptions, virtual re-implementation mismatches, and concrete improvements.

## Output Layout

```text
context/papers/<timestamp>-<title-slug>/
  source.md
  source.meta.json
  keshav-three-pass/
    01-first-pass-skim.md
    02-second-pass-grasp.md
    03-third-pass-deep-read.md
```

Each output carries `sop`, `tactic`, and `written_at` frontmatter. Report the
gate outcome, core claim, most consequential implicit assumption, unresolved
flags, and all output paths.