diff --git a/org-ops-core/src/lib.rs b/org-ops-core/src/lib.rs
index a3fb40a..22db738 100644
--- a/org-ops-core/src/lib.rs
+++ b/org-ops-core/src/lib.rs
@@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ pub mod chronicle_client;
 pub mod config;
 pub mod delegation;
 pub mod git_hash;
+pub mod manifest_loader;
 pub mod test_evidence;
 pub mod display;
 pub mod git_commands;
diff --git a/org-ops-core/src/manifest_loader.rs b/org-ops-core/src/manifest_loader.rs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b2e61e9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/org-ops-core/src/manifest_loader.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,299 @@
+// Copyright 2026 Guildhouse Dev
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: Apache-2.0
+
+//! Manifest loader — reads verified manifest entries and filters them
+//! by the session's ShellClass and delegation scope.
+//!
+//! Called at GSH session start to determine which binaries are authorized.
+//! Reads the `manifest-{name}` ConfigMap output written by the
+//! substrate-operator's manifest reconciler.
+
+use crate::session::SessionContext;
+use crate::shell_class::ShellClass;
+use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
+use sha2::{Digest, Sha256};
+
+/// A verified manifest entry (matches the reconciler's output format).
+#[derive(Debug, Clone, Serialize, Deserialize)]
+pub struct VerifiedEntry {
+    pub binary_name: String,
+    pub cid: String,
+    pub shell_class: String,
+    pub delegation_context: bool,
+    pub capability_mask: i64,
+    pub tier: String,
+}
+
+/// A binary that was loaded (authorized for this session).
+#[derive(Debug, Clone)]
+pub struct LoadedBinary {
+    pub name: String,
+    pub cid: String,
+    pub shell_class: String,
+}
+
+/// A binary that was excluded (not authorized for this session).
+#[derive(Debug, Clone)]
+pub struct ExcludedBinary {
+    pub name: String,
+    pub reason: String,
+}
+
+/// Result of loading and filtering a manifest for a session.
+#[derive(Debug)]
+pub struct ManifestLoadResult {
+    pub loaded: Vec<LoadedBinary>,
+    pub excluded: Vec<ExcludedBinary>,
+    pub manifest_cid: String,
+}
+
+/// Load and filter manifest entries for the current session.
+///
+/// Reads the manifest JSON (from ConfigMap mount or API), filters
+/// entries by the session's ShellClass and delegation scope, and
+/// optionally verifies on-disk binary hashes.
+pub fn load_manifest(
+    ctx: &SessionContext,
+    manifest_json: &str,
+) -> Result<ManifestLoadResult, String> {
+    let entries: Vec<VerifiedEntry> =
+        serde_json::from_str(manifest_json).map_err(|e| format!("manifest parse error: {e}"))?;
+
+    let manifest_cid = format!(
+        "sha256:{}",
+        hex::encode(Sha256::digest(manifest_json.as_bytes()))
+    );
+
+    let mut loaded = Vec::new();
+    let mut excluded = Vec::new();
+
+    for entry in &entries {
+        // Filter by ShellClass
+        let entry_class = parse_shell_class(&entry.shell_class);
+        if !ctx.shell_class.satisfies(entry_class) {
+            excluded.push(ExcludedBinary {
+                name: entry.binary_name.clone(),
+                reason: format!("requires {} shell", entry.shell_class),
+            });
+            continue;
+        }
+
+        // Filter delegation-context binaries in non-delegation sessions
+        if entry.delegation_context && !ctx.delegation_scope.permitted {
+            excluded.push(ExcludedBinary {
+                name: entry.binary_name.clone(),
+                reason: "requires delegation authority".into(),
+            });
+            continue;
+        }
+
+        loaded.push(LoadedBinary {
+            name: entry.binary_name.clone(),
+            cid: entry.cid.clone(),
+            shell_class: entry.shell_class.clone(),
+        });
+    }
+
+    Ok(ManifestLoadResult {
+        loaded,
+        excluded,
+        manifest_cid,
+    })
+}
+
+/// Compute a CID (SHA-256) for a file on disk.
+///
+/// Matches the `compute_cid()` format in gsap_client.rs.
+pub fn compute_file_cid(path: &std::path::Path) -> Result<String, String> {
+    let bytes = std::fs::read(path).map_err(|e| format!("read {}: {e}", path.display()))?;
+    Ok(format!("sha256:{}", hex::encode(Sha256::digest(&bytes))))
+}
+
+/// Verify that on-disk binaries match their manifest CIDs.
+///
+/// Returns a list of mismatched entries. Empty = all verified.
+pub fn verify_binary_hashes(
+    loaded: &[LoadedBinary],
+    bin_dir: &std::path::Path,
+) -> Vec<ExcludedBinary> {
+    let mut mismatches = Vec::new();
+    for binary in loaded {
+        let path = bin_dir.join(&binary.name);
+        match compute_file_cid(&path) {
+            Ok(on_disk_cid) => {
+                if on_disk_cid != binary.cid {
+                    mismatches.push(ExcludedBinary {
+                        name: binary.name.clone(),
+                        reason: format!(
+                            "hash mismatch: expected {}, found {}",
+                            binary.cid, on_disk_cid
+                        ),
+                    });
+                }
+            }
+            Err(reason) => {
+                mismatches.push(ExcludedBinary {
+                    name: binary.name.clone(),
+                    reason,
+                });
+            }
+        }
+    }
+    mismatches
+}
+
+fn parse_shell_class(s: &str) -> ShellClass {
+    match s {
+        "system" => ShellClass::System,
+        _ => ShellClass::Application,
+    }
+}
+
+#[cfg(test)]
+mod tests {
+    use super::*;
+    use crate::delegation::DelegationScope;
+
+    fn ctx(shell_class: ShellClass, delegation_permitted: bool) -> SessionContext {
+        SessionContext {
+            org_name: "test".into(),
+            trust_domain: "test.io".into(),
+            bascule_endpoint: "localhost".into(),
+            shell_class,
+            posture_level: 5,
+            delegation_scope: DelegationScope {
+                permitted: delegation_permitted,
+                target_hosts: vec![],
+                max_delegated_class: ShellClass::System,
+            },
+        }
+    }
+
+    fn manifest_json() -> String {
+        serde_json::to_string(&vec![
+            VerifiedEntry {
+                binary_name: "kubectl".into(),
+                cid: "sha256:aaa".into(),
+                shell_class: "application".into(),
+                delegation_context: false,
+                capability_mask: 1,
+                tier: "a".into(),
+            },
+            VerifiedEntry {
+                binary_name: "firmware-update".into(),
+                cid: "sha256:bbb".into(),
+                shell_class: "system".into(),
+                delegation_context: false,
+                capability_mask: 7,
+                tier: "c".into(),
+            },
+            VerifiedEntry {
+                binary_name: "ansible-playbook".into(),
+                cid: "sha256:ccc".into(),
+                shell_class: "application".into(),
+                delegation_context: true,
+                capability_mask: 3,
+                tier: "a".into(),
+            },
+        ])
+        .unwrap()
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn application_shell_excludes_system_binaries() {
+        let result = load_manifest(&ctx(ShellClass::Application, false), &manifest_json()).unwrap();
+        assert_eq!(result.loaded.len(), 1); // only kubectl (ansible needs delegation)
+        assert_eq!(result.loaded[0].name, "kubectl");
+        assert_eq!(result.excluded.len(), 2);
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn system_shell_loads_all_non_delegation() {
+        let result = load_manifest(&ctx(ShellClass::System, false), &manifest_json()).unwrap();
+        // kubectl + firmware-update loaded; ansible excluded (delegation_context)
+        assert_eq!(result.loaded.len(), 2);
+        assert_eq!(result.excluded.len(), 1);
+        assert_eq!(result.excluded[0].name, "ansible-playbook");
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn delegation_permitted_loads_delegation_binaries() {
+        let result = load_manifest(&ctx(ShellClass::Application, true), &manifest_json()).unwrap();
+        // kubectl + ansible loaded; firmware-update excluded (system)
+        assert_eq!(result.loaded.len(), 2);
+        let names: Vec<&str> = result.loaded.iter().map(|b| b.name.as_str()).collect();
+        assert!(names.contains(&"kubectl"));
+        assert!(names.contains(&"ansible-playbook"));
+        assert_eq!(result.excluded.len(), 1);
+        assert_eq!(result.excluded[0].name, "firmware-update");
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn system_shell_with_delegation_loads_all() {
+        let result = load_manifest(&ctx(ShellClass::System, true), &manifest_json()).unwrap();
+        assert_eq!(result.loaded.len(), 3);
+        assert_eq!(result.excluded.len(), 0);
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn empty_manifest_returns_empty() {
+        let result = load_manifest(&ctx(ShellClass::Application, false), "[]").unwrap();
+        assert_eq!(result.loaded.len(), 0);
+        assert_eq!(result.excluded.len(), 0);
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn invalid_json_returns_error() {
+        let result = load_manifest(&ctx(ShellClass::Application, false), "not json");
+        assert!(result.is_err());
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn manifest_cid_is_computed() {
+        let result = load_manifest(&ctx(ShellClass::System, true), &manifest_json()).unwrap();
+        assert!(result.manifest_cid.starts_with("sha256:"));
+        assert_eq!(result.manifest_cid.len(), 7 + 64); // "sha256:" + 64 hex chars
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn file_cid_computation() {
+        let dir = tempfile::tempdir().unwrap();
+        let path = dir.path().join("test-binary");
+        std::fs::write(&path, b"hello world").unwrap();
+        let cid = compute_file_cid(&path).unwrap();
+        assert!(cid.starts_with("sha256:"));
+        // SHA-256 of "hello world" is known
+        assert_eq!(
+            cid,
+            "sha256:b94d27b9934d3e08a52e52d7da7dabfac484efe37a5380ee9088f7ace2efcde9"
+        );
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn verify_hashes_detects_mismatch() {
+        let dir = tempfile::tempdir().unwrap();
+        let path = dir.path().join("test-bin");
+        std::fs::write(&path, b"actual content").unwrap();
+
+        let loaded = vec![LoadedBinary {
+            name: "test-bin".into(),
+            cid: "sha256:wrong".into(),
+            shell_class: "application".into(),
+        }];
+        let mismatches = verify_binary_hashes(&loaded, dir.path());
+        assert_eq!(mismatches.len(), 1);
+        assert!(mismatches[0].reason.contains("hash mismatch"));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn verify_hashes_missing_file() {
+        let dir = tempfile::tempdir().unwrap();
+        let loaded = vec![LoadedBinary {
+            name: "nonexistent".into(),
+            cid: "sha256:abc".into(),
+            shell_class: "application".into(),
+        }];
+        let mismatches = verify_binary_hashes(&loaded, dir.path());
+        assert_eq!(mismatches.len(), 1);
+    }
+}