The 21 Gun Salute

Day 198 / 365

You must have heard of the 21 gun salute, or as we say in Hindi — “21 Topo ki salami”. It is meant as a sign of respect and sometimes celebration. Some people in India do it at weddings as well. How did this tradition come about?

When firearms like cannons first started being used in wars, they could be shot just once before they had to be reloaded again. And the reload time was significant. Thus firing your guns and cannons in the air would render you armless, and therefore was seen as a sign of peace.

Initially, this used to be a 7 gun salute.7 has always been a special number in most cultures. The bible mentioned that God created the world in 7 days. Back in the day the astronomers though there were only 7 planets in the sky. These were the reasons why a week was made to have 7 days as well.

Later with advancements in technologies, land canons could shoot 3 shots at once. Thus the 7 gun salute became the 21 gun salute.

It’s amazing to see how some small gestures that made sense 100s of years back, become such a widespread tradition even today. For instance, the reasons why we “cheers” our glasses before drinking is because in ancient times people were afraid that someone is going to poison their drinks. So they will pour a little bit of their drink into the others and vice versa.

This post is part of my 365 Day Project for 2019. Read about it here

Yesterday’s blog — Minimal Viable Action