diff --git a/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/.openspec.yaml b/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/.openspec.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cbd245e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/.openspec.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+schema: spec-driven
+created: 2026-09-20
diff --git a/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/design.md b/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/design.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c42766e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/design.md
@@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
+## Context
+
+Operation creation writes `memory_operation:<sha256(operation_id)>`, while `get` and `get_db` issue `SELECT ... WHERE operation_id = $id LIMIT 1`. The uncomfortable fact is that the unique secondary index did not keep deployed receipt reads within the worker's ten-second request budget under heavy memory pressure; one lookup took 10.64 seconds before restart and 3.21 seconds after warmup.
+
+## Goals
+
+- Make receipt retrieval address the record that submission already created.
+- Preserve receipt conversion, missing-record behavior, replay semantics, and conflicts.
+- Avoid schema or migration changes.
+
+## Decision
+
+Use the Surreal client record selection API with table `memory_operation` and the existing `record_key(operation_id)` value in both `get` and `get_db`. The record key is SHA-256 hex, so it is deterministic and safe as a Surreal record identifier. The stored `operation_id` and its unique index remain available for validation and older queries.
+
+## Risks
+
+Rows created outside the operation service under a noncanonical record key will no longer be discoverable through the API. Such a row violates the service's existing creation contract; migrations and the operation submit path already use canonical keys.
+
+## Verification
+
+- Run the operations unit and integration tests, including duplicate submission, conflict, restart, and receipt lookup cases.
+- Measure the deployed GET endpoint before and after installing the rebuilt server.
+- Run the learning worker against the durable backlog and record delivered counts and timeouts.
diff --git a/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/proposal.md b/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/proposal.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..67bd9ae
--- /dev/null
+++ b/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/proposal.md
@@ -0,0 +1,23 @@
+## Why
+
+Operation receipts are stored under a deterministic record key derived from `operation_id`, but receipt reads filter the whole table by a duplicate field. On the deployed RocksDB service, a single lookup took 3–10 seconds and caused the durable learning worker to time out after only a few records.
+
+## What Changes
+
+- Read operation receipts and internal operation state by their deterministic record identity.
+- Retain the existing `operation_id` field and unique index for contract validation and compatibility.
+- Verify submit, replay, conflict, and receipt-read behavior through the operation integration suite.
+
+## Capabilities
+
+### New Capabilities
+
+- `operation-receipt-lookup`: Deterministic receipt retrieval by the durable operation identity.
+
+### Modified Capabilities
+
+None.
+
+## Impact
+
+This changes two read paths in `src/operations.rs`. The HTTP schema, stored record format, migrations, and operation state machine remain unchanged.
diff --git a/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/specs/operation-receipt-lookup/spec.md b/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/specs/operation-receipt-lookup/spec.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2b8e3e7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/specs/operation-receipt-lookup/spec.md
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+## Purpose
+
+Ensure durable operation receipts can be retrieved by their stable identity without work proportional to unrelated ledger rows.
+
+## ADDED Requirements
+
+### Requirement: Receipt lookup uses durable operation identity
+The ledger SHALL retrieve an operation by the deterministic record identity derived from the requested `operation_id`, and SHALL return only a record whose durable identity corresponds to that request.
+
+#### Scenario: Existing operation is requested
+- **WHEN** a caller requests a receipt for an `operation_id` that was durably accepted
+- **THEN** the ledger returns that operation's current receipt without filtering unrelated operation rows
+
+#### Scenario: Unknown operation is requested
+- **WHEN** a caller requests an `operation_id` whose deterministic record does not exist
+- **THEN** the ledger returns the existing not-found response
+
+### Requirement: Submit replay uses the same identity lookup
+The ledger SHALL use the same deterministic receipt lookup after submission and when resolving a concurrent or replayed operation ID.
+
+#### Scenario: Existing ID is submitted again
+- **WHEN** a caller submits an existing `operation_id` with the same payload hash
+- **THEN** the ledger returns the authoritative existing receipt without creating a second operation
+
+#### Scenario: Existing ID has another payload hash
+- **WHEN** a caller submits an existing `operation_id` with a different payload hash
+- **THEN** the ledger returns the existing conflict response
diff --git a/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/tasks.md b/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/tasks.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..190939e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/openspec/changes/direct-operation-receipt-lookup/tasks.md
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+## 1. Deterministic lookup
+
+- [x] 1.1 Replace field-filtered receipt reads with deterministic record selection in both public and internal operation reads; verify the crate compiles
+
+## 2. Verification
+
+- [x] 2.1 Run the operations test targets and strict OpenSpec validation
+- [ ] 2.2 Install the rebuilt server and measure receipt lookup plus learning-worker backlog progress
diff --git a/src/operations.rs b/src/operations.rs
index 63e0a8a..0ad4512 100644
--- a/src/operations.rs
+++ b/src/operations.rs
@@ -420,24 +420,17 @@ impl OperationService {
 
     pub async fn get(&self, operation_id: &str) -> Result<Option<OperationReceipt>> {
         let db = self.surreal()?.db()?;
-        let rows: Vec<DbOperation> = db
-            .query("SELECT * FROM memory_operation WHERE operation_id = $id LIMIT 1")
-            .bind(("id", operation_id.to_owned()))
-            .await?
-            .check()?
-            .take(0)?;
-        rows.into_iter().next().map(TryInto::try_into).transpose()
+        let operation: Option<DbOperation> = db
+            .select(("memory_operation", record_key(operation_id)))
+            .await?;
+        operation.map(TryInto::try_into).transpose()
     }
 
     async fn get_db(&self, operation_id: &str) -> Result<Option<DbOperation>> {
         let db = self.surreal()?.db()?;
-        let rows: Vec<DbOperation> = db
-            .query("SELECT * FROM memory_operation WHERE operation_id = $id LIMIT 1")
-            .bind(("id", operation_id.to_owned()))
-            .await?
-            .check()?
-            .take(0)?;
-        Ok(rows.into_iter().next())
+        Ok(db
+            .select(("memory_operation", record_key(operation_id)))
+            .await?)
     }
 
     async fn list_nonterminal_ids(&self) -> Result<Vec<String>> {