Terms of Service

Updated 25 March 2023

Cancellations and Refunds

1. Definition of Event

An event is any course, workshop, retreat, experience, and/or teaching offered by Somananda Tantra School in residential, nonresidential, and/or online formats.

2. Terms for In-person Events (Residential or Nonresidential)

Cancellations made by the attendee at least 91 days prior to the event date render the course fee paid as refundable, less any debit card, credit card, or PayPal processing fees (currently 7%). Alternatively, the attendee may transfer (one time only) the entire value of the course fee paid to another event within one year of the date of cancellation.

Cancellations made by the attendee between 61 and 90 days prior to the event date render the course fee paid as are non-refundable, but the attendee may transfer (one time only) the entire value of the course fee paid to another event within one year of the date of cancellation.

Cancellations made by the attendee between 31 and 60 days prior to the event date render the course fee paid as non-refundable, but attendees may transfer (one time only) 50% of the full value of the course fee paid to another event within one year of the date of cancellation.

Cancellations made by the attendee 30 days or less prior to the event date render the course fee paid as non-refundable and no transfer of fees is offered.

After the commencement date of the event all course fees paid are non-refundable.

In situations of all and any cancellations made by the attendee if Somananda Tantra School has incurred any other preparational costs outside of those related to payment gateway fees, those costs will be deducted from any refundable amount (e.g. costs of printing and sending event related booklets, supplies or other items to the attendee by post).

3. Terms for Online Events

Cancellations made by the attendee 31 days or more prior to the online event date render the course fee paid as refundable, less any debit card, credit card, or PayPal processing fees (currently 7%). Alternatively, the attendee may transfer (one time only) the entire value of the course fee paid to another event within one year of the date of cancellation.

Cancellations made by the attendee between 15 to 30 days prior to the online event date render the course fee paid as non-refundable, but the attendee may transfer (one time only) the entire value of the course fee paid to another event within one year of the date of cancellation.

Cancellations made by the attendee 14 days or less prior to the event date render the course fee paid as non-refundable and no transfer of fees is offered.

After the commencement date of the online event all course fees paid are non-refundable.

In situations of all and any cancellations made by the attendee at any time if Somananda Tantra School has incurred any other preparational costs outside of those related to payment gateway fees, those costs will be deducted from any refundable amount (e.g. costs of printing and sending event related booklets, supplies or other items to the attendee by post).

4. Digital Products

Digital items including downloadable audio, downloadable video, and DVDs are nonrefundable.

5. Cancellation by Somananda Tantra School

In the unlikely situation that an event is postponed or canceled by Somananda Tantra School, all payments are refundable at the request of the attendee (except in the case of force majeure – see below).

Alternatively, an attendee may transfer (one time only) the entire value of the course fee paid to another event within one year of the date of cancellation.

Cancellations Due to Force Majeure

6. Event Cancellation Due to Force Majeure

In a situation where an event is cancelled by Somananda Tantra School due to force majeure (see definition below), no refunds are offered.

The attendee may use the full value of the paid amount toward another event within 12 months from the end of the circumstances, which created the force majeure.

7. Definition of Force Majeure

In this clause, force majeure refers to a situation beyond the control of Somananda Tantra School and our team which, as a result, prevents us from fulfilling any of our obligations or conducting events in the way stated in our advertising, event descriptions, or other channels.

This includes but is not limited to:

  • An act of God (such as, but not limited to, fires, explosions, earthquakes, drought, tidal waves, and floods);
  • War, hostilities (whether war has been declared or not), invasions, acts of foreign enemies, mobilizations, requisitions, or embargoes;
  • Rebellions, revolutions, insurrections, military or usurped power, or civil war;
  • Governmental declarations including, but not limited to, martial law, curfews, no-travel or remain-in-place orders, etc.;
  • Riots, epidemics and pandemics, commotion, strikes, go-slows, lockouts or other types of disorder, commuting accidents or disturbances, flight cancellations, and any crash of public systems; 
  • Contamination by radioactivity from any nuclear fuel, or from any nuclear waste from the combustion of nuclear fuel, radioactive toxic explosive, or other hazardous properties of any explosive nuclear assembly or nuclear component of such assembly; or
  • Acts or threats of terrorism.

8. Consequences of Force Majeure

Neither Somananda Tantra School nor its team shall be considered in breach of their duties if prevented by a situation of force majeure from providing the events or other activities during the designated dates per our advertising or according to intended commitments.

If we or our team are prevented from carrying out our obligations as a result of force majeure, then reasonable efforts shall be made to give notice to all attendees upon this being foreseen by, or becoming known to, Somananda Tantra School or our team.

If Somananda Tantra School or our team are prevented from executing any events or commitments due to a situation of force majeure, we shall be relieved of our obligations to provide any of the events or other activities, but shall endeavor to continue to perform our obligations so far as reasonably practical and possible (and in accordance with good operating practices).

If Somananda Tantra School is prevented from holding an in-person physical event due to a situation of force majeure, we shall make efforts to offer the same event in an online format within a reasonable amount of time. In such cases course fees paid are rendered non-refundable and will apply for the same event offered in the new format.

Should Somananda Tantra School incur additional costs as a result, despite taking reasonable steps to mitigate the costs, we are entitled to reallocate such costs to our attendees as is reasonable for the relevant event (cost being defined as having no profit component). This may result in the need for an additional payment due prior to joining an event.

If Somananda Tantra School, as a result of a situation of force majeure, is forced to delay or cancel events or other activities, in such a case neither we nor our team will bear any responsibility for event participants’ damages, including loss of money, flight tickets, accommodation reservations, or any other expenses incurred by the attendee as a result of the cancellation or delay.

Irrespective of any extension of time, if a situation of force majeure occurs and its effects continue to impact our services negatively, then Somananda Tantra School retains the right to cancel events or other activities without bearing any responsibility or damages whatsoever.

Attendee Confirmation

9. Right to Accept and Reject

Somananda Tantra School has the right to accept or reject any attendee to any of our events at any time. We are not obliged to explain the reasons for such decisions.

Somananda Tantra School also has the right to cancel any previously confirmed and accepted attendee if the head teachers see fit. We are not obliged to explain the reasons for such decisions.

10. Right to Remove from an Event

If for any reason we deem that an attendee’s participation is not appropriate or presents a safety risk to himself/herself or others, we reserve the right to remove the attendee from the event.

If this occurs, the attendee will be refunded a prorated event fee. All other expenses that the attendee may have incurred, including lodging and travel expenses, will be the attendee’s sole responsibility and not the responsibility of Somananda Tantra School.

11. Events with an Application

Certain Somananda Tantra School events require a hopeful attendee to fill out an online application form. The purpose of such a form is to get to know the attendee a little better and to build a harmonious group for the event. Be aware that Somananda Tantra School may choose not to accept certain applicants and that we are not compelled or obliged to accept any applicants for an event. This does not reflect on the attendee personally in any way. Our considerations are made based solely on the need to build a harmonious and successful group. If you are not accepted once, apply to our next course; you will probably fit with another group.In the event that an attendee is not accepted for an event, any fees paid will be refunded in full.

12. Waiting Lists

When booking an event with Somananda Tantra School a hopeful attendee acknowledges and accepts that in certain situations he or she may be put on waiting lists.

For example, occasionally Somananda Tantra School offers events which require a gender balance, meaning an equal number of men to women will be accepted to those events. This means that an attendee may be put on a waiting list until additional attendees from the opposite gender apply and are accepted to the event.

When applying to join any of our events a hopeful attendee must accept the possibility of remaining on the waiting list for an unknown period of time. He or she will be notified as soon as possible when participation can be fully confirmed. In some cases, such confirmation may only be possible a few days prior to the event start date.

In case it is not possible for the attendee to join the event on short notice, or if the attendee wishes to cancel the registration while still on the waiting list, a full refund of all related payments made will be offered minus any debit card, credit card, or PayPal processing fees (currently 7%).

Alternatively, the attendee may transfer (one time only) the entire value of his or her payment to another event within one year of the date of attendee’s voluntary withdrawal from the event.

Event Confirmation

13. Minimum Attendees Requirement

By booking an event with Somananda Tantra School, you confirm that you are aware of and accept that every one of our events has a minimum attendance requirement. Therefore, the event is not fully confirmed until this minimum number has been reached. While you may have been accepted to join the event, the event itself, however, may not yet have been confirmed.

Attendees will be informed by email as to their status of enrollment (whether accepted or not) as well as the status of the event (confirmed or not yet confirmed). Event confirmation will be updated to each attendee as soon as such confirmation is known.

14. Timing of Event Confirmation

By booking an event with Somananda Tantra School, an attendee confirms that he or she is aware of and accepts that in some cases the event confirmation may be announced just a few days prior to the event start date.

Your Travel Arrangements

15. Your Responsibility for Travel Arrangements

Making travel arrangements to the event location (country, city, and venue) is the sole responsibility of the attendee. Occasionally for residential events, Somananda Tantra School may arrange local transportation to a venue, but cost may still be the responsibility of the attendee.

Somananda Tantra School bears no responsibility under any circumstances for any financial investments or losses incurred by the attendee.

We strongly recommend not to make any travel arrangements until the event you wish to attend has been confirmed. If you go ahead with your arrangements prior to confirmation, we recommend that you choose travel insurance to protect yourself in case an event must be canceled.

Somananda Tantra School bears no responsibility for any financial losses incurred by the attendee in the event the course is postponed or canceled.

Terms of Payment

16. Terms of Payment

In the process of purchasing our services, including booking an event, you need to follow the payment process as set forth on our website.

Service and event prices are due to change in time as depicted on the respective page of our website (early-bird tickets, regular tickets, last-call tickets). In order to take advantage of lower course fees, the purchase must  be completed in full prior to the designated expiration date shown on the page of a respective service or event. Once that deadline has passed, the next level of fees will be due. Payments of expired course fee rates will not be accommodated.

By purchasing tickets for our services and events, you acknowledge and fully agree to the following:

  1. Completion of a purchase does not guarantee your acceptance to any of our events. An official confirmation from Somananda Tantra School team is needed for that (sent in the form of an email);
  2. For your purchase to be completed, additional information may be requested (such as an application form, for example) in order to evaluate your suitability for our services or events;
  3. Somananda Tantra School may decline provision of services and events to anyone at any time under any circumstances and we are not obliged to provide subsequent explanations in any format – verbal, written, or digital.

Using Our Services and This Website

17. Legal Entity

This website is operated by Somananda Tantra School (legal name Ananda OU). Throughout the site, the terms “we,” “us,” and “our” refer to Somananda Tantra School.

18. Overview

The Somananda Tantra School offers this website – including all information, tools, and services available from this site – to you, the user, conditioned upon your acceptance of all terms, conditions, policies, and notices stated here.

The headings used in this agreement are included for convenience only and will not limit or otherwise affect these terms.

19. Our Services

By visiting our site and/or purchasing something from us, you engage in our services and agree to be bound by these terms and conditions (“Terms of Service”), including those additional terms, conditions, and policies referenced herein and/or available by hyperlink. 

Products and services, herein, refer mainly to, but are not limited to, events – courses, retreats, workshops, and teachings offered by Somananda Tantra School. Products may also refer to all physical or digital goods sold through our website.

20. Website Users

These Terms of Service apply to all users of the site, including without limitation users who are browsers, event attendees, vendors, customers, merchants, and/or contributors of content.

Please read these Terms of Service carefully before accessing or using our website. By accessing or using any part of the site, you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service. If you do not agree to all the terms and conditions of this agreement, then you may not access the website or use any services.

Any new features or tools which are added to the current store shall also be subject to the Terms of Service.

21. Age of Majority

By agreeing to these Terms of Service, you represent that you are at least the age of majority in your country, province, or state of residence, or that you are the age of majority in your country, province, or state of residence and you have given us your consent to allow any of your minor dependents to use this site.

22. Prohibited Usage

You may not use our website or products for any illegal or unauthorized purposes nor may you, in such use, violate any laws in your jurisdiction (including but not limited to copyright laws). You must not transmit any worms or viruses or any code of a destructive nature.

A breach or violation of any of the terms will result in an immediate termination of our services to you.

23. General Conditions

We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone for any reason at any time.

You understand that your content (not including credit card information) may be transferred unencrypted and involve (a) transmissions over various networks; and (b) changes to conform and adapt to technical requirements of connecting networks or devices. Credit card information is always encrypted during transfer over networks.

24. Intellectual Property and Copyrights

This website and all the materials available on the website are the property of Somananda Tantra School and/or our affiliates or licensors, and are protected by copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property laws.

The website is provided solely for your personal noncommercial use. You may not use the website or the materials available on the website in a manner that constitutes an infringement of our rights or that has not been authorized by Somananda Tantra School. 

More specifically, unless explicitly authorized in these Terms of Service or by the owner of the materials, you may not modify, copy, reproduce, republish, upload, post, transmit, translate, sell, create derivative works, exploit, or distribute in any manner or medium (including by email or other electronic means) any material from the website.

25. Accuracy, Completeness, and Timeliness of Information

We are not responsible if information made available on this site is not accurate, complete, or current. The material on this site is provided for general information only and should not be relied upon or used as the sole basis for making decisions without consulting primary, more accurate, more complete, or more timely sources of information. Any reliance on the material on this site is at your own risk.

We reserve the right to modify the contents of this site at any time, but we have no obligation to update any information on our site. You agree that it is your responsibility to monitor changes to our site.

26. Modifications to Services and Prices

Prices for our services are subject to change without notice. We reserve the right to modify or discontinue services (or any part or content thereof) at any time without notice.

We shall not be liable to you or to any third party for any modification, price change, suspension, or discontinuance of services.

27. Selling of Products

Certain products may be available exclusively online through the website. These products may have limited quantities and are subject to return or exchange only according to our Return Policy.

We have made every effort to display as accurately as possible the colors and images of our products and content and overview of the services that appear on our website and are offered for purchase. We cannot guarantee that your computer monitor’s display of any colors or pictures will be accurate.

We reserve the right, but are not obligated, to limit the sales of our products or services to any person, geographical region, or jurisdiction. We may exercise this right on a case-by-case basis. We reserve the right to limit the quantities of any products or services that we offer. 

All descriptions of products and services or their pricing are subject to change at any time without notice, at our sole discretion. We reserve the right to discontinue any product or service at any time. Any offer for any product or service made on this site is void where prohibited.

We do not guarantee that the quality of any products, services, information, or other material purchased or obtained by you will meet your expectations, or that any errors in our service will be corrected.

28. Accuracy of Billing and Account Information

We reserve the right to refuse any order you place with us. We may, at our sole discretion, limit or cancel quantities purchased per person, per household, or per order. These restrictions may include orders placed by or under the same customer account, the same credit card, and/or orders that use the same billing and/or shipping address. 

In the event that we make a change to or cancel an order, we may attempt to notify you by contacting the email and/or billing address/phone number provided at the time the order was made. We reserve the right to limit or prohibit orders that, in our sole judgment, appear to be placed by dealers, resellers, or distributors.

You agree to provide current, complete, and accurate purchase and account information for all purchases made on our website. You agree to promptly update your account and other information, including your email address and credit card numbers/expiration dates, so that we can complete your transactions and contact you as needed.

29. Optional Tools

We may provide you with access to third-party tools over which we neither monitor nor have any control nor input.

You acknowledge and agree that we provide access to such tools ”as is” and “as available” without any warranties, representations, or conditions of any kind and without any endorsement. We shall have no liability whatsoever arising from or relating to your use of optional third-party tools.

Your use of optional tools offered through our site is entirely at your own risk and discretion and you should ensure that you are familiar with and approve of the terms on which tools are provided by the relevant third-party provider(s).

We may also, in the future, offer new services and/or features through our website (including the release of new tools and resources). Such new features and/or services shall also be subject to these Terms of Service.

30. Third-party Links

Certain content, products, and services available via our website may include materials from third parties.

Third-party links on this website may direct you to third-party websites that are not affiliated with Somananda Tantra School. We are not responsible for examining or evaluating the content or accuracy of those sites and we do not guarantee and will not have any liability or responsibility for any third-party materials or websites, or for any other materials, products, or services offered by third parties.

We are not liable for any harm or damages related to the purchase or use of goods, services, resources, content, or any other transactions made in connection with any third-party websites. 

Please review carefully the third-party’s policies and practices and make sure you understand them before you engage in any transaction. Complaints, claims, concerns, or questions regarding third-party products should be directed to the third party.

31. User Comments, Feedback, and Other Submissions

If, at our request, you send certain specific submissions or verbally agree to our recording of a video or audio testimony of you at an event (for example, feedback about event experience, written testimony, audio or video clips) or – without a request from us – you send creative ideas, suggestions, proposals, plans, or other materials, whether online, by email, by postal mail, or otherwise (collectively known as “comments”), you agree that we may, at any time and without restriction, edit, copy, publish, distribute, translate, and otherwise use in any medium any comments that you forwarded to us. We are and shall be under no obligation to maintain any comments in confidence, to pay compensation for any comments, or to respond to any comments.

We may, but have no obligation to, monitor, edit, or remove content that we determine at our sole discretion is unlawful, offensive, threatening, libelous, defamatory, pornographic, obscene, or otherwise objectionable or violates any party’s intellectual property or these Terms of Service.

You agree that your comments will not violate any right of any third party, including copyright, trademark, privacy, personality, or other personal or proprietary right. 

You further agree that your comments will not contain libelous or otherwise unlawful, abusive, or obscene material, or contain any computer virus or other malware that could in any way affect the operation of our services or any related website. 

You may not use a false email address, pretend to be someone other than yourself, or otherwise mislead us or third parties as to the origin of any comments. You are solely responsible for any comments you make and their accuracy. We take no responsibility and assume no liability for any comments posted by you or any third party.

32. Personal Information

Your submission of personal information through our website or store is governed by our Privacy Policy. Please refer to our Privacy Policy to learn more.

33. Errors, Inaccuracies, and Omissions

Occasionally there may be information on our website or in our services that contains typographical errors, inaccuracies, or omissions that may relate to event descriptions, locations, product descriptions, pricing, promotions, offers, product shipping charges, transit times and availability, etc. 

We reserve the right to correct any errors, inaccuracies, or omissions, and to change or update information or cancel participation in events or orders if any information in our services or on any related website is inaccurate at any time without prior notice (including after you have submitted your order).

We undertake no obligation to update, amend, or clarify information in our services or on any related website including, without limitation, pricing information, except as required by law. No specified update or refresh date applied in our services or on any related website, should be taken to indicate that all information in our services or on any related website has been modified or updated.

34. Prohibited Uses

In addition to other prohibitions as set forth in the Terms of Service, you are prohibited from using our website or its content: 

  • For any unlawful purpose; 
  • To solicit others to perform or participate in any unlawful acts; 
  • To violate any international, country, federal, provincial, or state regulations, rules, laws, or local ordinances; 
  • To infringe upon or violate our intellectual property rights or the intellectual property rights of others; 
  • To harass, abuse, insult, harm, defame, slander, disparage, intimidate, or discriminate based on gender, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, race, age, national origin, or disability; 
  • To submit false or misleading information; 
  • To upload or transmit viruses or any other type of malicious code that will or may be used in any way that will affect the functionality or operation of our services or of any related website, other websites, or the Internet; 
  • To collect or track the personal information of others; 
  • To spam, phish, pharm, pretext, spider, crawl, or scrape; 
  • For any obscene or immoral purpose; or 
  • To interfere with or circumvent the security features of our services or any related website, other websites, or the Internet.

We reserve the right to terminate your use of our website and services or any related website for violating any of the prohibited uses. In such situations no refunds are offered whatsoever.

35. Disclaimer of Warranties; Limitation of Liability

We do not guarantee or represent that your use of our services will be uninterrupted, timely, secure, or error-free.

We do not guarantee that the results that may be obtained from the use of our services will be accurate or reliable.

You agree that from time to time we may remove our website or services for indefinite periods of time or cancel our services at any time, without notice to you.

You expressly agree that your use of, or inability to use, our website or services is at your sole risk. Our website and all products and services delivered to you via our website are (except as expressly stated by us) provided “as is” and “as available” for your use, without any representation, warranties, or conditions of any kind, either express or implied, including all implied warranties or conditions of merchantability, merchantable quality, fitness for a particular purpose, durability, title, and non-infringement.

In no case shall Somananda Tantra School, our directors, officers, employees, affiliates, agents, contractors, interns, suppliers, service providers, or licensors be liable for any injury, loss, claim, or any direct, indirect, incidental, punitive, special, or consequential damages of any kind, including without limitation lost profits, lost revenue, lost savings, loss of data, replacement costs, or any similar damages, whether based in contract, tort (including negligence), strict liability or otherwise, arising from your use of any of the services or products procured using our website, or for any other claim related in any way to your use of our website or any product, including, but not limited to, any errors or omissions in any content, or any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of the use of the website or any content (or product) posted, transmitted, or otherwise made available via our website, even if advised of their possibility. 

Because some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of liability for consequential or incidental damages, in such jurisdictions, our liability shall be limited to the maximum extent permitted by law.

36. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Somananda Tantra School and our subsidiaries, affiliates, partners, officers, directors, agents, contractors, licensors, service providers, subcontractors, suppliers, interns, and employees harmless from any claim or demand, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, made by any third party due to or arising out of your breach of these Terms of Service or the documents they incorporate by reference, or your violation of any law or the rights of a third party.

37. Severability

In the event that any provision of these Terms of Service is determined to be unlawful, void, or unenforceable, such provision shall nonetheless be enforceable to the fullest extent permitted by applicable Estonian law, and the unenforceable portion shall be deemed to be severed from these Terms of Service. Such determination shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any other remaining provisions.

38. Termination

The obligations and liabilities of the parties incurred prior to the termination date shall survive the termination of this agreement for all purposes.

If in our sole judgment you fail, or we suspect that you have failed, to comply with any term or provision of these Terms of Service, we also may terminate this agreement at any time without notice and you will remain liable for all amounts due up to and including the date of termination; and/or accordingly may deny you access to our services (or any part thereof).

39. Entire Agreement

Our failure to exercise or enforce any right or provision of these Terms of Service shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision.

These Terms of Service and any policies or operating rules posted by us on this site or with respect to our services, constitutes the entire agreement and understanding between you and us and governs your use of our services, superseding any prior or contemporaneous agreements, communications, and proposals, whether oral or written, between you and Somananda Tantra School (including, but not limited to, any prior versions of the Terms of Service).

Any ambiguities in the interpretation of these Terms of Service shall not be construed against the drafting party.

40. Governing Law

These Terms of Service and any separate agreements whereby we provide you services shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Republic of Estonia.

41. Updates and Changes to Terms of Service

You can review the most current version of the Terms of Service at any time on this page.

We reserve the right, at our sole discretion, to update, change, or replace any part of these Terms of Service by posting updates and changes to our website. It is your responsibility to check our website periodically for changes. Your continued use of or access to our website or our services following the posting of any changes to these Terms of Service constitutes acceptance of those changes.

42. Contact Information

Questions about the Terms of Service should be sent to us at .