Privacy Policy

2. What you give us when you sign up

• Your name and email address. There is no password: each time you sign in we email you a one-time code that expires shortly after.
• If you sign in with Google, Google sends us your name and email address. We never see your Google password.
• Reading the verses, chapters and stories needs no sign-up at all, and asks for nothing.

3. What you tell us about yourself

After signing up, your profile asks for a few details so the site can suggest what to do next: a photo, phone number, city and country, where you are in your spiritual journey, whether you are connected to ISKCON or a temple, whether you are initiated, how many rounds you chant, your experience level, your goals, and how often you plan to learn, live and lead. Every one of these is yours to edit or clear at any time in your account.

4. What we note as you study

To power your dashboard, points, badges and leaderboards we keep a simple record of what you have done here:

• Which verses you have studied, which purports you have marked as read, and how many times you have read each verse again.
• Quizzes you have made and the scores you earned.
• Days you have marked as days you lived the teachings.
• Class and reel plans you made in Lecture Studio, and whether you gave them.
• How often you use the study tools, so we know what to improve.

5. Your consent, and why we may use your information

• Before your account is set up, you are asked to tick three boxes: that you agree to these terms and this policy, that you consent to us keeping your profile and study activity to run your account, and that you are 16 or older (or have a parent's or guardian's permission). None of them is ticked for you.
• Showing yourself on the leaderboard is a separate, optional choice that starts switched off.
• We record the date you agreed and which version of the wording you saw. If the wording changes in a way that matters, we ask you again.
• We use your information only to provide what you signed up for — your account, dashboard, points, badges and reminders — and to keep the site safe and working. You may withdraw your consent at any time by deleting your account.

6. What we do not keep

• There are no private notes, bookmarks or reflections stored anywhere — the site has no place to write them.
• We never ask for card or bank details.
• We do not sell, rent or trade your information to anyone, and we do not use it for advertising.

7. The few services that help us run the site

• Google — lets you sign in with your Google account.
• Location services (geojs.io, with ipapi.co as backup) — after you have given your consent, suggests your city and country once from your internet connection, so you do not have to type them. You can change or clear them.
• An AI service — writes the answers in the Ask tools, Test yourself and Lecture Studio, using only the translations and purports. Your name and contact details are not sent to it.
• vedabase.io — opens in a new tab when you click a purport link. Once you are there, that site's own policy applies.

8. Cookies and storage

A small login token keeps you signed in between visits, and a little text saved in your browser remembers your settings on this device. These are needed for the site to work; there are no advertising or tracking cookies. Clearing your browser storage signs you out and forgets those settings.

9. What other readers can see

Other readers see you only if you choose to appear on the leaderboards, where your name, photo, place, points and badges are shown so readers can encourage one another. That choice starts switched off and you can change it at any time in your profile. The site's admins can see readers' profiles and progress so they can look after the community and answer questions.

10. How we protect your information

The site is served over an encrypted connection, each reader's records can be read only by that reader and the admins, and photos are stored privately. Your records are kept only while your account is open and are erased when you delete it.

11. Your rights

• See and correct: edit any profile detail yourself at any time.
• Download: press "Download my data" in your account settings for a copy of everything your account holds, in a standard file.
• Delete and withdraw consent: press "Delete my account" in your account settings. Your profile, photo, progress, quizzes, Live days, class plans and sign-in are erased straight away.
• Object or ask a question: write to connect@vedicstudymap.com. You may also complain to the data protection authority where you live.

12. Children

Reading needs no account. To open an account you must be 16 or older, or have a parent's or guardian's permission.