Himalaya Email Workflows

CLI email client for IMAP/Maildir/Notmuch backends.

Command Structure

All commands follow: himalaya <resource> <action>

Quick Reference

Inbox Triage

Important: Flags must come BEFORE the query filter (if any).

# List unread/new messages (use --output json for cleaner parsing)
himalaya envelope list --output json 'not flag Seen'

# List all envelopes (default: INBOX)
himalaya envelope list --output json

# List with specific folder and page
himalaya envelope list -f Archive -p 2

# Read message by ID
himalaya message read 123

# Mark as seen
himalaya flag add 123 seen

# Move to folder (TARGET first, then ID)
himalaya message move Archive 123

Searching (Query DSL)

Himalaya uses its own query DSL, NOT IMAP SEARCH syntax:

# Filter by date
himalaya envelope list after 2025-01-01
himalaya envelope list before 2025-01-15
himalaya envelope list date 2025-01-10

# Filter by sender/recipient
himalaya envelope list from boss@company.com
himalaya envelope list to team@company.com

# Filter by content
himalaya envelope list subject urgent
himalaya envelope list body "project update"

# Filter by flag (use 'not flag Seen' for unread)
himalaya envelope list 'not flag Seen'
himalaya envelope list flag flagged

# Combine with operators
himalaya envelope list from boss@company.com and subject urgent
himalaya envelope list "from alice or from bob"
himalaya envelope list not flag seen

# Sort results
himalaya envelope list order by date desc
himalaya envelope list subject report order by from asc

Composing

# New message (opens $EDITOR)
himalaya message write

# Reply / Reply-all
himalaya message reply 123
himalaya message reply 123 --all

# Forward
himalaya message forward 456

Attachments (MML Syntax)

Attachments use MML in the message body, not command-line flags:

To: recipient@example.com
Subject: Files attached

Here is the document.

<#part filename=/path/to/file.pdf><#/part>

Inline image:
<#part disposition=inline filename=/path/to/image.png><#/part>

Organizing

# List folders
himalaya folder list

# Move message(s) - TARGET folder comes first, then IDs
himalaya message move Archive 123 456

# Copy message(s) - TARGET folder comes first, then IDs
himalaya message copy Backup 123

# Delete (marks as deleted)
himalaya message delete 123

# Expunge (permanent delete)
himalaya folder expunge INBOX

Scripting

# JSON output for parsing
himalaya envelope list --output json
himalaya envelope list --output json | jq '.[].id'

# Specific account
himalaya envelope list -a work

# Combine for automation
himalaya envelope list --output json 'not flag Seen' | jq -r '.[].id' | while read id
    himalaya message read $id
end

Common Flags

Note: Always use --output json when parsing output programmatically. Plain output includes WARN log messages that interfere with parsing. Flags must come BEFORE any query filter.

Templates (Non-Interactive)

Generate messages without opening $EDITOR:

# Generate template (stdout)
himalaya template write
himalaya template reply 123
himalaya template forward 456

# Pipe and send
echo "To: x@y.com\nSubject: Hi\n\nHello" | himalaya template send

Common Mistakes