Obsidian Mermaid Diagrams

VerifiedSafe

Create Mermaid diagrams that render correctly in Obsidian. Prefer square layouts, avoid markdown in labels, and keep labels short for clean publication.

Sby Skills Guide Bot
DocumentationBeginner
7/23/2026
Claude CodeCursorWindsurfCopilotCodex
#mermaid#diagrams#obsidian#markdown#visualization

Recommended for

Automated summary

This skill guides the creation of Obsidian-compatible Mermaid diagrams by enforcing simplicity, layout, and label rules that prevent rendering errors.

Strengths

  • A precise catalogue of common Obsidian rendering errors (markdown in labels, <br/> tags, headings) with the corresponding fixes
  • A concrete square-layout pattern: flowchart TB with direction LR subgraphs and invisible ~~~ links for alignment
  • Node and connection minimization heuristics, illustrated with before/after examples
  • Decision guidance for choosing a table, Mermaid, or inline flow, plus ASCII-art conversion

Limitations

  • The skill only produces text: it neither renders nor previews diagrams, so remaining errors are not caught automatically
  • Part of the explanatory prose is written in Korean, which may hinder some readers
  • The under-15-characters label rule is arbitrary and awkward for longer technical terms
When to use it

Use it when you need to add or fix a Mermaid diagram inside an Obsidian note or a published markdown file.

When not to use it

Skip it for highly detailed or heavily styled diagrams (themes, CSS classes, complex graphs), since the skill deliberately favors minimal diagrams.

Security analysis

Safe
Quality score82/100

The skill only instructs creation and editing of Mermaid diagram syntax in markdown files using Read and Edit tools. No execution of code, network access, destructive commands, or data exfiltration is involved.

No concerns found

How this analysis is made

Examples

New flowchart in a note
Add a Mermaid flowchart to my Obsidian note that shows the flow Input → Validation → Storage, and keep it compact enough to read on mobile.
Fix a rendering error
My Obsidian diagram shows 'Unsupported markdown: list' — here is the Mermaid block, can you fix it so it renders properly?
Convert ASCII art
Convert this ASCII diagram into Obsidian-compatible Mermaid and keep the labels short.

name: obsidian-mermaid description: Create Obsidian-compatible Mermaid diagrams. Prefer square layouts (TB + subgraph LR), avoid markdown in labels. Use when creating flowcharts, sequence diagrams, or any Mermaid diagrams in markdown files. allowed-tools:

  • Read
  • Edit license: MIT

Obsidian Mermaid Diagrams

Create Mermaid diagrams that render correctly in Obsidian and publish without issues.

When to Use This Skill

Activate when you need to:

  • Create flowcharts, sequence diagrams, ER diagrams
  • Convert ASCII art to Mermaid
  • Fix Mermaid rendering errors in Obsidian

Core Principle: Simplicity First

다이어그램은 한눈에 들어와야 한다

복잡한 다이어그램은 읽기 어렵다. 항상 최소한의 노드와 연결로 핵심만 표현하라.

Node Minimization

Before (9개 노드):

flowchart LR
    A[수집] --> B[정리] --> C[보관]
    D[목표] --> E[학습] --> F[실행] --> G[측정] --> H[달성]

After (2개 노드 - 순차 흐름을 노드 내 텍스트로):

flowchart LR
    A[수집 → 정리 → 보관]
    B[목표 → 학습 → 실행 → 달성]

Connection Minimization

  • 핵심 흐름만 표현, 세부사항은 본문에서 설명
  • 노드 5개 이하, 연결선 교차 금지
  • 복잡한 관계는 여러 개의 단순한 다이어그램으로 분리

Table vs Mermaid 선택

| 형식 | 용도 | 예시 | |------|------|------| | 테이블 | 속성-값 매핑, 비교, 옵션 | 에너지 레벨별 작업 | | Mermaid | 흐름, 프로세스, 피드백 루프 | 입력→처리→출력 | | 인라인 | 단순 순차 흐름 | A → B → C |

원칙: 같은 정보를 더 컴팩트하게 표현하는 형식 선택


Critical Rules

1. NO Markdown in Labels

Common Errors:

Node["1. First"]     → "Unsupported markdown: list"
Node["Text<br/>More"] → "Unsupported markdown: heading"
Node["## Header"]    → "Unsupported markdown: heading"

Correct:

Node[First]
Node[Text]

Rule: Keep labels plain text. Move complex descriptions outside the diagram.

2. Prefer Square Layout (정사각형 레이아웃)

Problem: flowchart LR은 너무 넓고, flowchart TB는 너무 길어진다.

Solution: TB + 내부 LR 조합으로 정사각형에 가까운 레이아웃 만들기

flowchart TB
    subgraph Layer1["레이어 1"]
        direction LR
        A[항목A] ~~~ B[항목B] ~~~ C[항목C]
    end

    subgraph Layer2["레이어 2"]
        direction LR
        D[항목D] ~~~ E[항목E]
    end

    Layer1 --> Layer2

패턴:

  • flowchart TB: 전체 흐름은 위→아래
  • direction LR: 각 subgraph 내부는 가로 배치
  • ~~~: 보이지 않는 연결 (화살표 없이 정렬용)

Rule: 세로로 너무 길어지면 subgraph + direction LR 사용.

3. Keep Labels Short

❌ Too long:
Node["This is a very long description that will break layout"]

✅ Short and clear:
Node[Short Label]

Rule: Labels should be under 15 characters. Add details in text below the diagram.

4. Avoid Special Characters in Subgraph Names

❌ May cause issues:
subgraph "1. Phase One"
subgraph "Phase: Setup"

✅ Safe:
subgraph Phase_One["Phase One"]
subgraph Setup["Setup Phase"]

Good Examples

Simple Flowchart

flowchart TB
    A[Start] --> B{Decision}
    B -->|Yes| C[Action]
    B -->|No| D[End]

Process Flow with Details Outside

flowchart TB
    Input[Input] --> Process[Process]
    Process --> Output[Output]

Process Details:

  • Input: User data from form
  • Process: Validation and transformation
  • Output: Saved to database

Subgraph Example

flowchart TB
    subgraph Frontend["Frontend"]
        UI[UI] --> API[API Call]
    end
    subgraph Backend["Backend"]
        Server[Server] --> DB[Database]
    end
    API --> Server

Bad Examples (Don't Do This)

Markdown in Labels

flowchart LR
    A["1. Start<br/>with details"] --> B{"2. Decision"}

This will show "Unsupported markdown" errors.

Too Wide

flowchart LR
    A[Very Long Process Name Here] --> B[Another Long Name] --> C[Yet Another] --> D[And More]

This gets cut off on mobile and narrow screens.

Converting ASCII to Mermaid

ASCII Art:

┌───────┐     ┌───────┐
│ Start │────→│  End  │
└───────┘     └───────┘

Mermaid:

flowchart TB
    Start[Start] --> End[End]

Quality Checklist

Before completing diagram creation:

  • [ ] No <br/> tags in node labels
  • [ ] No numbered list format (1., 2.) in labels
  • [ ] 정사각형 레이아웃: TB + subgraph 내 LR 조합 사용
  • [ ] All labels are short (under 15 characters)
  • [ ] Complex details moved to text outside diagram
  • [ ] No special characters in subgraph names
  • [ ] Tested rendering in Obsidian preview

From the file to a first result

The download contains exactly the content displayed on this page. This copy may differ from the latest version in the source repository.

View the source and supporting files

This download contains SKILL.md only. Any scripts, references, templates and dependencies are not included. Get the required files from the source, preserving their directory structure, before continuing.

1. Download the file

Download SKILL.md

From the root of a test project, save the file as .skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3/SKILL.md, or use the command below. This folder is for inspecting the skill before installation.

Command for macOS/Linux or WSL: requires a POSIX shell and curl. On Windows without WSL, use the download button and create the folder manually.

mkdir -p '.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3' && curl --fail --show-error --location 'https://skills-guides.com/api/skills/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3/download' --output '.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3/SKILL.md.part' && mv '.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3/SKILL.md.part' '.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3/SKILL.md'

2. Check prerequisites

Read SKILL.md before using it. If it references scripts or external services, inspect them and prepare the required access in your test environment.

No recognized prerequisites section in this file. This does not mean it is self-contained: libraries, tools and access requirements may be mentioned elsewhere in the content or source repository.

The platforms on this page are catalog indications. The paths below follow tool documentation; they do not prove this skill has been run in those tools. No minimum tool version is confirmed for this listing.

3. Load the skill

After inspection, copy the complete folder into your project using one of the commands below, then open a new tool session. The command stops if a folder with the same name already exists: compare the files before replacing it.

Claude Code
test -f '.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3/SKILL.md' && test -s '.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3/SKILL.md' && mkdir -p '.claude/skills' && test ! -e '.claude/skills/obsidian-mermaid' && cp -R '.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3' '.claude/skills/obsidian-mermaid'

Cursor
test -f '.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3/SKILL.md' && test -s '.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3/SKILL.md' && mkdir -p '.cursor/skills' && test ! -e '.cursor/skills/obsidian-mermaid' && cp -R '.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3' '.cursor/skills/obsidian-mermaid'

Codex
test -f '.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3/SKILL.md' && test -s '.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3/SKILL.md' && mkdir -p '.agents/skills' && test ! -e '.agents/skills/obsidian-mermaid' && cp -R '.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3' '.agents/skills/obsidian-mermaid'

OpenSkills

OpenSkills must already be installed. The local install/read procedure is checked with OpenSkills 1.5.0, which requires Node.js ≥ 20.6.0. Catalog slugs are not resolved automatically.

Official OpenSkills installation
openskills install './.skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3'

openskills read 'obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3'

Reading should display the installed file content and its base directory. It does not run the skill or install its dependencies.

For an agent that reads AGENTS.md, then sync the index. This command changes AGENTS.md: review the diff before using it.

openskills sync

Manual method or another tool: attach SKILL.md to a conversation, or open it in an agent that can read files. Include any required supporting resources. No universal folder is recognized by every tool.

4. Try a first task

Use a short, synthetic input: an API endpoint, a small document or an interface brief. In a new conversation, attach the file or give the agent its path, then adapt this request:

Read .skill-downloads/obsidian-mermaid-diagrams-mrx3xxl3/SKILL.md and apply its instructions to this example: [describe a test input]. Identify any missing files, dependencies or access. Produce the result requested by the skill without inventing data or running unreviewed scripts.

Expected result: output matching the skill instructions, or a precise list of missing prerequisites. A read confirmation alone does not validate a first use. If an external resource is unavailable, that path remains untested.

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