The minimum possible data, held with care.
The Global Om collects the minimum possible data to operate. We store: an approximate location (a ~5km grid square — never your exact address), the time and duration of your Om, an anonymous random ID stored in your browser, and the audio of your Om — your voice joins an open archive of the world's Oms, so that one day people can listen to the world chanting together. You're told this up front, before you chant. Your exact GPS coordinates are converted into a rough grid square inside your own browser before anything reaches our server — we are technically incapable of knowing where exactly you were. There is no account. There is no login. There is no email address. There is no way to connect your Om to your identity. We keep Oms indefinitely as part of the global record of peace. You can release your Oms — including your audio — at any time by visiting theglobalom.org/forget.
A note on honesty (satya): we keep the audio on purpose — an open archive of the world's Oms, a recording of humanity breathing together, is a gift worth keeping. We tell you plainly before you chant, and we let you take yours back anytime. We would rather be clear with you than quietly cautious.
A few small things, and your voice — nothing more:
| What | Detail | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Approximate location | A geohash at precision 5 — a grid square roughly 4.9 km wide. Never your exact coordinates or address. | To place a dot of light on the living map. |
| Timestamp & duration | The moment your Om was offered and how long it lasted. | To show the map filling with peace over time. |
| Anonymous browser ID | A random identifier generated and held only in your own browser. Not linked to a name, email, or device. | So you can later ask us to release your Oms from the map. |
| Your voice | A short audio clip of your Om, kept in an open archive of the world's voices. You're told before you chant. Deletable anytime at /forget. | So that one day, the world can listen to itself chanting together. |
When you offer an Om, your browser may ask for your location. If you allow it, your device knows your exact coordinates — but we never do.
Before anything is sent to our server, your browser rounds your position down to a geohash: a short code that represents a grid square on the Earth's surface. We use precision 5, which corresponds to a square roughly 4.9 km across. Many people in a town or neighbourhood share the same square.
This blurring happens entirely inside your own browser, on your own device. Only the grid square is transmitted. By design, we are technically incapable of knowing where exactly you were — we simply never receive that information.
Your Oms are tied only to the anonymous random ID held in your browser — there is no other way to identify them. You can release them from the map whenever you wish.
Visit theglobalom.org/forget to remove the Oms made from this browser. No questions, no friction.
The Global Om is a contemplative gesture and a shared work of art — a way of marking a moment of peace on a map of the world. It is not a medical device, a treatment, a diagnosis, or a wellness program.
We make no claims about physical, mental, or emotional outcomes. Offer your Om as exactly what it is: a breath, freely given.