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The [[Qur'an|Quran]] has a particular conception of the nature of mountains, their formation, and the geological role they play that is is referenced in multiple verses. In recent times, many Islamic scholars have argued that this conception is both scientifically sound and an instance of [[Scientific Miracles in the Quran|miraculous scientific foreknowledge]] on the part of the Quran which, they argue, could not have arrived at the conception it holds without divine insight. Individuals key to the popularization of this idea include the [[Apologists|apologist]] [[Zakir Naik]] and the Saudi-financed surgeon [[Bucailleism|Dr. Maurice Bucaille]]. | The [[Qur'an|Quran]] has a particular conception of the nature of mountains, their formation, and the geological role they play that is is referenced in multiple verses. In recent times, many Islamic scholars have argued that this conception is both scientifically sound and an instance of [[Scientific Miracles in the Quran|miraculous scientific foreknowledge]] on the part of the Quran which, they argue, could not have arrived at the conception it holds without divine insight. Individuals key to the popularization of this idea include the [[Apologists|apologist]] [[Zakir Naik]] and the Saudi-financed surgeon [[Bucailleism|Dr. Maurice Bucaille]]. | ||
Parties advocating the description of mountains found in the Quran as a scientific miracle identify two key claims made in the scripture: (1) that Mountains can be described as 'pegs' and (2) that mountains play some role in 'stabilizing the Earth' - these two ideas, advocates hold, are evidence of a miraculous scientific insight. Critics challenge the advocates' interpretations of the relevant verses as well as their use and presentation of scientific information on the topic, arguing instead that the Quran is erroneous in these respects. Critics further claim that the Qur'an is scientifically inaccurate in | Parties advocating the description of mountains found in the Quran as a scientific miracle identify two key claims made in the scripture: (1) that Mountains can be described as 'pegs' and (2) that mountains play some role in 'stabilizing the Earth' - these two ideas, advocates hold, are evidence of a miraculous scientific insight. Critics challenge the advocates' interpretations of the relevant verses as well as their use and presentation of scientific information on the topic, arguing instead that the Quran is erroneous in these respects. Critics further claim that the Qur'an is scientifically inaccurate in defining a specific time period when mountains were formed and Allah having cast them into the earth. | ||
==Formation of mountains in the Quran== | ==Formation of mountains in the Quran== | ||
===Stage in the creation account=== | ===Stage in the creation account=== | ||
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|41| | {{Quote|{{Quran-range|41|9|12}}|Say, "Do you indeed disbelieve in He who created the earth in two days and attribute to Him equals? That is the Lord of the worlds." '''And He placed on the earth firmly set mountains over its surface, and He blessed it and determined therein its [creatures'] sustenance in four days without distinction - for [the information] of those who ask'''. Then He directed Himself to the heaven while it was smoke and said to it and to the earth, "Come [into being], willingly or by compulsion." They said, "We have come willingly." And He completed them as seven heavens within two days and inspired in each heaven its command. And We adorned the nearest heaven with lamps and as protection. That is the determination of the Exalted in Might, the Knowing.}} | ||
The above verses are the Quranic six day creation account. In this description, mountains are created within a four day period (which is usually understood to overlap with the first two day period mentioned in the | The above verses are the Quranic six day creation account. In this description, mountains are created within a four day period (which is usually understood to overlap with the first two day period mentioned in the previous verse). | ||
Critics note that rather than being confined to a closed period, mountain formation began early in Earth's history due to the process of [[w:Plate techtonics|plate tectonics]] (with accompanying earthquakes), has continued for billions of years, and continues to do so now and into the future. With each plate collision mountains keep on rising higher little by little. And when the plates start to move away from each other, then these mountains start to erode until after millions of years, they completely disappear. On a geological timescale, mountains are not "firmly set", but rather they rise and fall, and are replaced by other mountain ranges over time. For example, there existed no Mount Everest 250 million years ago. The Himalayan mountain range began to grow when two continental plates collided, which will eventually separate again and Everest will gradually erode and disappear completely.<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/science/mountain-landform/Tectonic-processes-that-create-and-destroy-mountain-belts-and-their-components Tectonic processes that create and destroy mountain belts and their components] - Britannica.com</ref> | |||
A hadith, {{Muslim|39|6707}}, has Muhammad elaborating that mountains were created on the second day (Sunday), which represents an even more specific interpretation. In his exegesis for {{Quran|22|47}} ("a day with your Lord is like a thousand years"), Ibn Kathir includes a report of Ibn 'Abbas stating that each of the six days in which Allah created the heavens and the earth was a thousand years.<ref>Ibn Kathir writes under the commentary of this verse 22:47: | |||
{{Quote|1=[https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=1&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=22&tAyahNo=47&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1 Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Verse Quran 22:47]|2=قال ابن أبي حاتم حدثنا الحسن بن عرفة، حدثني عبدة بن سليمان عن محمد بن عمرو عن أبي سلمة عن أبي هريرة أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم قال " يدخل فقراء المسلمين الجنة قبل الأغنياء بنصف يوم خمسمائة عام " ورواه الترمذي والنسائي من حديث الثوري عن محمد بن عمرو به، وقال الترمذي حسن صحيح. وقد رواه ابن جرير عن أبي هريرة موقوفاً، فقال حدثني يعقوب، حدثنا ابن علية، حدثنا سعيد الجريري عن أبي نضرة عن سمير بن نهار قال قال أبو هريرة يدخل فقراء المسلمين الجنة قبل الأغنياء بمقدار نصف يوم، قلت وما مقدار نصف يوم؟ قال أو ما تقرأ القرآن؟ قلت بلى، قال { وَإِنَّ يَوْماً عِندَ رَبِّكَ كَأَلْفِ سَنَةٍ مِّمَّا تَعُدُّونَ }. وقال أبو داود في آخر كتاب الملاحم من سننه حدثنا عمرو بن عثمان، حدثنا أبو المغيرة، حدثنا صفوان عن شريح بن عبيد عن سعد بن أبي وقاص عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم أنه قال " إني لأرجو أن لا تعجز أمتي عند ربها أن يؤخرهم نصف يوم " قيل لسعد وما نصف يوم؟ قال خمسمائة سنة. وقال ابن أبي حاتم حدثنا أحمد بن سنان، حدثنا عبد الرحمن بن مهدي عن إسرائيل عن سماك، عن عكرمة عن ابن عباس { وَإِنَّ يَوْماً عِندَ رَبِّكَ كَأَلْفِ سَنَةٍ مِّمَّا تَعُدُّونَ } قال من الأيام التي خلق الله فيها السموات والأرض. ورواه ابن جرير عن ابن بشار عن ابن المهدي، وبه قال مجاهد وعكرمة، ونص عليه أحمد بن حنبل في كتاب الرد على الجهمية، وقال مجاهد هذه الآية كقوله{ يُدَبِّرُ ٱلاَْمْرَ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ إِلَى ٱلاَْرْضِ ثُمَّ يَعْرُجُ إِلَيْهِ فِى يَوْمٍ كَانَ مِقْدَارُهُ أَلْفَ سَنَةٍ مِّمَّا تَعُدُّونَ } السجدة 5. | {{Quote|1=[https://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=1&tTafsirNo=7&tSoraNo=22&tAyahNo=47&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1 Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Verse Quran 22:47]|2=قال ابن أبي حاتم حدثنا الحسن بن عرفة، حدثني عبدة بن سليمان عن محمد بن عمرو عن أبي سلمة عن أبي هريرة أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم قال " يدخل فقراء المسلمين الجنة قبل الأغنياء بنصف يوم خمسمائة عام " ورواه الترمذي والنسائي من حديث الثوري عن محمد بن عمرو به، وقال الترمذي حسن صحيح. وقد رواه ابن جرير عن أبي هريرة موقوفاً، فقال حدثني يعقوب، حدثنا ابن علية، حدثنا سعيد الجريري عن أبي نضرة عن سمير بن نهار قال قال أبو هريرة يدخل فقراء المسلمين الجنة قبل الأغنياء بمقدار نصف يوم، قلت وما مقدار نصف يوم؟ قال أو ما تقرأ القرآن؟ قلت بلى، قال { وَإِنَّ يَوْماً عِندَ رَبِّكَ كَأَلْفِ سَنَةٍ مِّمَّا تَعُدُّونَ }. وقال أبو داود في آخر كتاب الملاحم من سننه حدثنا عمرو بن عثمان، حدثنا أبو المغيرة، حدثنا صفوان عن شريح بن عبيد عن سعد بن أبي وقاص عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم أنه قال " إني لأرجو أن لا تعجز أمتي عند ربها أن يؤخرهم نصف يوم " قيل لسعد وما نصف يوم؟ قال خمسمائة سنة. وقال ابن أبي حاتم حدثنا أحمد بن سنان، حدثنا عبد الرحمن بن مهدي عن إسرائيل عن سماك، عن عكرمة عن ابن عباس { وَإِنَّ يَوْماً عِندَ رَبِّكَ كَأَلْفِ سَنَةٍ مِّمَّا تَعُدُّونَ } قال من الأيام التي خلق الله فيها السموات والأرض. ورواه ابن جرير عن ابن بشار عن ابن المهدي، وبه قال مجاهد وعكرمة، ونص عليه أحمد بن حنبل في كتاب الرد على الجهمية، وقال مجاهد هذه الآية كقوله{ يُدَبِّرُ ٱلاَْمْرَ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ إِلَى ٱلاَْرْضِ ثُمَّ يَعْرُجُ إِلَيْهِ فِى يَوْمٍ كَانَ مِقْدَارُهُ أَلْفَ سَنَةٍ مِّمَّا تَعُدُّونَ } السجدة 5. | ||
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===Casting mountains into the earth=== | ===Casting mountains into the earth=== | ||
The Quran states that the mountains on Earth's surface were cast upon it by God. The imagery is clear when one considers | The Quran states that the mountains on Earth's surface were cast upon it by God. The imagery is clear when one considers that the mountains are also described as 'pegs' in a separate verse discussed in the next section. | ||
{{Quote|{{Quran|16|15}}|And He has cast into the earth firmly set mountains, lest it shift with you, and [made] rivers and roads, that you may be guided,}} | {{Quote|{{Quran|16|15}}|And He has cast into the earth firmly set mountains, lest it shift with you, and [made] rivers and roads, that you may be guided,}} | ||
The word 'he has cast' is ''alqā'' (from the root lam-qaf-ya), which in this form (Arabic verb form IV) is frequently used elsewhere in the Quran to mean throw or cast.<ref>alqā أَلْقَىٰ - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000266.pdf Lane's Lexicon, Suppliment p. 3012]<BR />See paragraph number 4 for the form IV verb definition.</ref> | The word 'he has cast' is ''alqā'' (from the root lam-qaf-ya), which in this form (Arabic verb form IV) is frequently used elsewhere in the Quran to mean throw or cast.<ref>alqā أَلْقَىٰ - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000266.pdf Lane's Lexicon, Suppliment p. 3012]<BR />See paragraph number 4 for the form IV verb definition.</ref> The same word occurs in {{Quran|3|44}} when lots are cast using pens (it would be easy to imagine that mountains were similarly scattered, though perhaps should not be taken too literally in this context), and {{Quran|12|10}} when the prophet Yusuf is cast down into the well, and in {{Quran|20|20}} when Moses casts down his staff, which becomes a snake. | ||
The other verses using alqā in the context of mountains are {{Quran|15|19}} and {{Quran|50|7}} which both begin with "And the earth - We spread it out and cast therein firmly set mountains..." and {{Quran|31|10}} "He created the heavens without pillars that you see and has cast into the earth firmly set mountains | The other verses using alqā in the context of mountains are {{Quran|15|19}} and {{Quran|50|7}} which both begin with "And the earth - We spread it out and cast therein firmly set mountains..." and {{Quran|31|10}} "He created the heavens without pillars that you see and has cast into the earth firmly set mountains..." In all of these verses the words "firmly set mountains" is rawāsiya in the Arabic text. The same Arabic root has words meaning firmly set, steadfast, anchored or anchors.<ref name="LexiconRawaasiya">Rawās رَوَاس - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000253.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 1087</ref> Perhaps the connection with anchors is intended as part of a poetic picture alongside the verb alqā meaning casting or throwing. | ||
A very similar verse to {{Quran|16|15}} quoted above is {{Quran|21|31}}, which instead of alqā uses the verb jaʿala ([https://quranx.com/Analysis/Root/jim-ayn-lam made or placed])<ref>jaʿala جعل - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume2/00000066.pdf Lane's Lexicon page 430]</ref>. See also {{Quran|27|61}} where Allah is said to have made (jaʿala) the earth an abode, and made (jaʿala) in its midst rivers and firmly set mountains, and a barrier between the two seas. Jaʿala is also used in | A very similar verse to {{Quran|16|15}} quoted above is {{Quran|21|31}}, which instead of alqā uses the verb jaʿala ([https://quranx.com/Analysis/Root/jim-ayn-lam made or placed])<ref>jaʿala جعل - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume2/00000066.pdf Lane's Lexicon page 430]</ref>. See also {{Quran|27|61}} where Allah is said to have made (jaʿala) the earth an abode, and made (jaʿala) in its midst rivers and firmly set mountains, and a barrier between the two seas. Jaʿala is also used in {{Quran-range|78|6|7}} about mountains made as pegs discussed in the next section. | ||
Again, mountain formation is described in all these verses only as a past event. However, according to modern science, mountains were not placed or cast into the earth's surface, but rather they are byproducts of an ongoing process driven by [[w:Plate tectionics|plate tectonics]] in which continental and oceanic crust plates slowly move over time | Again, mountain formation is described in all these verses only as a past event. However, according to modern science, mountains were not placed or cast into the earth's surface, but rather they are byproducts of an ongoing process driven by [[w:Plate tectionics|plate tectonics]] in which continental and oceanic crust plates slowly move over time. This is driven by 1) mantle convection currents, 2) by ridge push as buoyant magma upwells at oceanic ridges, and 3) by slab pull, as the leading edges of plates sink at subduction zones, cooling and pulling the rest of the plate behind. | ||
Some critics also note that | A number of resulting processes can then cause the gradual formation and disappearance of mountain ranges (often accompanied by earthquakes). Such processes include when the collision of two continental plates results in a thickening of the crust, or when an oceanic plate subducts underneath a continental plate, resulting in volcanic mountain formation and an accretionary wedge, or mountains formed by fault blocks or tilted block faulting (see illustrations below). Eventually, erosion causes the mountain range to disappear as has happened many times over the eons. The implication of the Quranic verses are instead that Allah cast or placed mountains by special creation in certain locations rather them being a byproduct of a larger ongoing process (tectonic movements). | ||
Some critics also note that another verse, {{Quran|41|10}} discussed above, says Allah placed (jaʿala) on the earth mountains "from above it" (min fawqiha من فوقها), though almost all modern official translations interpret the Arabic simply to mean the mountains are above the earth's surface.<ref>See a variety of official translations of ''[https://quranx.com/41.10 Verse 41:10 on Quranx.com]''. Note that not all do; see Ahmad Khan and Hilali & Khan,</ref> Either interpretation seems possible based on how the preposition with noun are used in [https://quranx.com/Analysis/Root/fa-waw-gaf some other verses] - see for example {{Quran|6|65}}, {{Quran|29|55}} or {{Quran|33|10}}, though on the other hand {{Quran|39|16}} and {{Quran|39|20}}. | |||
==Mountains as pegs== | ==Mountains as pegs== | ||
The Quran makes a claim about mountains in general - that they are made as pegs or stakes. This is stated in the context of the Earth as a wide expanse (''mihadan'' مِهَٰدًا | The Quran makes a claim about mountains in general - that they are made as pegs or stakes. This is stated in the context of the Earth as a wide expanse (''mihadan'' مِهَٰدًا , same as مَهْدًا mahdan in the similar verses {{Quran|20|53}} and {{Quran|43|10}}, and means a cradle or bed; a plain, even, or smooth expanse.<ref>مَهْدً mahdan - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume7/00000267.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 2739</ref>). | ||
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|78|6|7}}|Have We not made the earth as a wide expanse, And the mountains as pegs?}} | {{Quote|{{Quran-range|78|6|7}}|Have We not made the earth as a wide expanse, And the mountains as pegs?}} | ||
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The word for mountains in this case is jibāla and the word translated as pegs is awtādan, which means pegs or stakes placed in the ground<ref>awtādan [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000171.pdf Lane's Lexicon] p. 2917</ref> It also occurs in reference to Pharaoh's "stakes" in {{Quran|38|12}} and {{Quran|89|10}}, sometimes related in exegesis to the crucifixions he is said to have ordered in other verses, though the preceding context around the latter of those two verses makes clear that there l-awtād refers to some kind of lasting rock-hewn monuments. | The word for mountains in this case is jibāla and the word translated as pegs is awtādan, which means pegs or stakes placed in the ground<ref>awtādan [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume8/00000171.pdf Lane's Lexicon] p. 2917</ref> It also occurs in reference to Pharaoh's "stakes" in {{Quran|38|12}} and {{Quran|89|10}}, sometimes related in exegesis to the crucifixions he is said to have ordered in other verses, though the preceding context around the latter of those two verses makes clear that there l-awtād refers to some kind of lasting rock-hewn monuments. | ||
As mentioned above, the picture is supplemented by {{Quran|16|15}}, {{quran|21|31}} and {{Quran|31|10}}, which all mention Allah casting rawāsiya (steadfast, immovable, anchors, i.e. mountains)<ref name="LexiconRawaasiya" /> in the earth lest it shift with people. Critics would reiterate here that mountains do move over geological time. | |||
An important observation is that the verse is phrased as a question: "Have We not made [...] the mountains as pegs?". Therefore, the author is referring to a concept which he assumes even the Quran's initial audience will understand. | An important observation is that the verse is phrased as a question: "Have We not made [...] the mountains as pegs?". Therefore, the author is referring to a concept which he assumes even the Quran's initial audience will understand. | ||
===Earth anchored by mountains in early or pre-Islamic poetry=== | ===Earth anchored by mountains in early or pre-Islamic poetry=== | ||
The pre-Islamic poet commonly known as al-Muhalhil, "The poem weaver", whose name was Abu Layla Adi ibn Rabi'ah at-Taghlabi (d. 531 CE), composed a number of famous poems. While possibly post-Quranic, some lines from one poem attributed to al-Muhalhil uses some of the same terminology as the | The pre-Islamic poet commonly known as al-Muhalhil, "The poem weaver", whose name was Abu Layla Adi ibn Rabi'ah at-Taghlabi (d. 531 CE), composed a number of famous poems. While possibly post-Quranic, some lines from one poem attributed to al-Muhalhil uses some of the same terminology as the Quran: | ||
{{Quote|1=Some lines from a poem attributed to al-Muhalhil about the death of his brother.<BR />Arabic of the full poem is avalable on the Poetsgate.com website<ref>https://poetsgate.com/poem.php?pm=27780</ref>. Translation is by D. S. Margoliouth<ref>See p. 438, D. S. Margoliouth (1925) [https://www.jstor.org/stable/25220762 The Origins of Arabic Poetry] The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, No. 3 (Jul., 1925), pp. 417-449</ref><ref>See also the same poem by al-Muhalhil quoted and commented on in Abdullah al-Udhari (1991) [https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/28750/1/10672918.pdf Jahili Poetry before Imru al-Qais (4000 BCE–500 CE)] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230311152446/https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/28750/1/10672918.pdf archive]), PhD thesis, London School of Oriental and African Studies, pp. 151-2 (his source for the poem, given in footnote 1, p. 255 with expanded reference on p. 296, is al-Balkhī (Abū Zaid Aḥmad b. Sahl), Kitāb al-Bad' wa al-Tārīkh, I) ed. Huart, Editions Earnest Leroux, 1899-1919 pp. 149-50)</ref>|2= | {{Quote|1=Some lines from a poem attributed to al-Muhalhil about the death of his brother.<BR />Arabic of the full poem is avalable on the Poetsgate.com website<ref>https://poetsgate.com/poem.php?pm=27780</ref>. Translation is by D. S. Margoliouth<ref>See p. 438, D. S. Margoliouth (1925) [https://www.jstor.org/stable/25220762 The Origins of Arabic Poetry] The Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, No. 3 (Jul., 1925), pp. 417-449</ref><ref>See also the same poem by al-Muhalhil quoted and commented on in Abdullah al-Udhari (1991) [https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/28750/1/10672918.pdf Jahili Poetry before Imru al-Qais (4000 BCE–500 CE)] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20230311152446/https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/28750/1/10672918.pdf archive]), PhD thesis, London School of Oriental and African Studies, pp. 151-2 (his source for the poem, given in footnote 1, p. 255 with expanded reference on p. 296, is al-Balkhī (Abū Zaid Aḥmad b. Sahl), Kitāb al-Bad' wa al-Tārīkh, I) ed. Huart, Editions Earnest Leroux, 1899-1919 pp. 149-50)</ref>|2= | ||
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has the earth swayed with us or have its anchors swayed?}} | has the earth swayed with us or have its anchors swayed?}} | ||
The next lines of the poem go on to mention the heaven falling and some words about the earth. The above quoted extract uses the word rawāsiya (firmly set mountains), which occurs also in some Quranic verses and whose root has an association with anchoring and anchors as discussed above.<ref name="LexiconRawaasiya" />. | The next lines of the poem go on to mention the heaven falling and some words about the earth. The above quoted extract uses the word rawāsiya (firmly set mountains), which occurs also in some Quranic verses and whose root has an association with anchoring and anchors as discussed above.<ref name="LexiconRawaasiya" />. The verb translated "swayed" is mādati (shift/convulse/incline), which appears in the form tamīda in those same Quranic verses<ref name="tamida" /> which state that Allah cast mountains [rawāsiya] into the earth "lest it shift [tamīda] with you". A clue to their correct interpretation is that in this poem it is the earth in its entirety whose mountains are involved in preventing it from swaying. This is further discussed in the section about these verses below. | ||
Also perhaps relevant is a poem about the creation of a flat earth attributed to the pre-Islamic poet Zayd b. 'Amr, who reportedly was a monotheist who met Muhammad before his prophetic career began. The poem is recorded in the biography of Muhammad by Ibn Ishaq (d. 767 CE) and must pre-date that work.<ref name="Guillaume102">Guillaume, A., The Life of Muhammad, London: Oxford University Press, 1955, p. 102</ref> Much like {{Quran-range|79|27|33}}, the poem says "He spread it out" (daḥāhā<ref>دحو dahawa - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000023.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 857</ref>) i.e. the earth, then even clearer than the Quran, saw that it was level (استوت istawat<ref>استوت istawat - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000201.pdf Lane's Lexicon] p. 1477</ref>) on the water (i.e. flat), "and set firm the mountains on it" (arsā ʿalayhā l-jibālā, very similar to wa-l-jibāla ʾarsāhā in verse 79:32 of the Quranic passage). | Also perhaps relevant is a poem about the creation of a flat earth attributed to the pre-Islamic poet Zayd b. 'Amr, who reportedly was a monotheist who met Muhammad before his prophetic career began. The poem is recorded in the biography of Muhammad by Ibn Ishaq (d. 767 CE) and must pre-date that work.<ref name="Guillaume102">Guillaume, A., The Life of Muhammad, London: Oxford University Press, 1955, p. 102</ref> Much like {{Quran-range|79|27|33}}, the poem says "He spread it out" (daḥāhā<ref>دحو dahawa - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume3/00000023.pdf Lane's Lexicon] page 857</ref>) i.e. the earth, then even clearer than the Quran, saw that it was level (استوت istawat<ref>استوت istawat - [http://www.studyquran.org/LaneLexicon/Volume4/00000201.pdf Lane's Lexicon] p. 1477</ref>) on the water (i.e. flat), "and set firm the mountains on it" (arsā ʿalayhā l-jibālā, very similar to wa-l-jibāla ʾarsāhā in verse 79:32 of the Quranic passage). | ||
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He spread it out and when He saw that it was settled upon the waters, He fixed the mountains upon it}} | He spread it out and when He saw that it was settled upon the waters, He fixed the mountains upon it}} | ||
The idea of mountains preventing the world from shaking is in fact far more ancient, being found even in much earlier Vedic texts,<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/topic/Veda Veda] | Hinduism | Britannica Entry | |||
''..No definite date can be ascribed to the composition of the Vedas, but the period of about 1500–1200 BCE is acceptable to most scholars..''</ref> along with a similar creation story of the [[Scientific Errors in the Quran#Earth%20and%20heavens%20torn%20apart|Earth and sky being split]] in {{Quran|21|30}} and [[:en:A_Barrier_Between_Two_Seas_and_the_Cosmic_Ocean|cosmic waters]], with all three being folklore of ancient people.<ref>Witzel, E.J. Michael. The Origins of the World's Mythologies (p. 137). Oxford University Press. | ''..No definite date can be ascribed to the composition of the Vedas, but the period of about 1500–1200 BCE is acceptable to most scholars..''</ref> along with a similar creation story of the [[Scientific Errors in the Quran#Earth%20and%20heavens%20torn%20apart|Earth and sky being split]] in {{Quran|21|30}} and [[:en:A_Barrier_Between_Two_Seas_and_the_Cosmic_Ocean|cosmic waters]], with all three being folklore of ancient people.<ref>Witzel, E.J. Michael. The Origins of the World's Mythologies (p. 137). Oxford University Press. | ||
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Advocates of the scientific miracle argue that isostasy means that mountains have peg-like structures and that this is what was meant by the Quran. | Advocates of the scientific miracle argue that isostasy means that mountains have peg-like structures and that this is what was meant by the Quran. | ||
Critics respond to this in a number of ways. Firstly, as noted above, the verse itself assumes that its 7th century listeners understand what is meant, so it can hardly be referring to advanced geological concepts: "Have We not made [...] the mountains as pegs?" | Critics respond to this in a number of ways. | ||
(1) Firstly, as noted above, the verse itself assumes that its 7th century listeners understand what is meant, so it can hardly be referring to advanced geological concepts: "Have We not made [...] the mountains as pegs?" | |||
Secondly, they note that the caption associated with the diagram found in Cailleux's book explicitly points out that the visual representation has had its 'vertical scale greatly exaggerated'. Other visual representations with less exaggerated and more accurate vertical scales, some of which are cited by the advocates themselves, do not depict mountains as in any way resembling pegs.<ref name="A Brief Illustrated Guide to Understanding Islam" /> | (2) Secondly, they note that the caption associated with the diagram found in Cailleux's book explicitly points out that the visual representation has had its 'vertical scale greatly exaggerated'. Other visual representations with less exaggerated and more accurate vertical scales, some of which are cited by the advocates themselves, do not depict mountains as in any way resembling pegs.<ref name="A Brief Illustrated Guide to Understanding Islam" /> | ||
Thirdly, such images represent a cross section of a mountain range, not individual mountains. These crustal root structures (also called mountain roots) occur at the level of entire ranges which can be thousands of kilometres long and only a few tens of kilometers deep. The entire mountain range whose dominant feature is its length protrudes relatively slightly into the upper mantle, unlike a peg whose depth is greater than its width. Some images of actual crustal roots underlying famous mountain ranges are shown below. | (3) Thirdly, such images represent a cross section of a mountain range, not individual mountains. These crustal root structures (also called mountain roots) occur at the level of entire ranges which can be thousands of kilometres long and only a few tens of kilometers deep. The entire mountain range whose dominant feature is its length protrudes relatively slightly into the upper mantle, unlike a peg whose depth is greater than its width. Some images of actual crustal roots underlying famous mountain ranges are shown below. | ||
Fourthly, critics point out that unlike pegs which are foreign objects placed into something else, mountains caused by plate collisions or faults are of continuous material as the surrounding crust, albeit contorted or faulted into different shapes due to geological processes. Furthermore, plateau mountains (including mesas and buttes) such as those of the Najd Plateau in Saudi Arabia (illustrated below) are caused by the erosion of surrounding material so can hardly be described as having been placed there. | (4) Fourthly, critics point out that unlike pegs which are foreign objects placed into something else, mountains caused by plate collisions or faults are of continuous material as the surrounding crust, albeit contorted or faulted into different shapes due to geological processes. Furthermore, plateau mountains (including mesas and buttes) such as those of the Najd Plateau in Saudi Arabia (illustrated below) are caused by the erosion of surrounding material so can hardly be described as having been placed there. | ||
Fifthly, an effect called ''uplift'' maintains the height of mountains for some time even as erosion occurs, by reducing the depth of the crustal root. This is because the thickened subterranean crust is nevertheless buoyant relative to the molten mantle, so it thrusts upwards as erosion lightens the weight above, maintaining isostatic balance and eventually resulting in normal crustal thickness.<ref>Joseph A. DiPietro, ''Geology and Landscape Evolution (Second Edition)'', 2018 quoted at https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/crustal-root</ref> | (5) Fifthly, an effect called ''uplift'' maintains the height of mountains for some time even as erosion occurs, by reducing the depth of the crustal root. This is because the thickened subterranean crust is nevertheless buoyant relative to the molten mantle, so it thrusts upwards as erosion lightens the weight above, maintaining isostatic balance and eventually resulting in normal crustal thickness.<ref>Joseph A. DiPietro, ''Geology and Landscape Evolution (Second Edition)'', 2018 quoted at https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/crustal-root</ref> | ||
Sixthly, some argue that the concept of a subterranean aspect of mountains is found already in the Bible and may in some form have been adopted by Muhammad, if that is indeed the meaning in the Quran. | (6) Sixthly, some argue that the concept of a subterranean aspect of mountains is found already in the Bible and may in some form have been adopted by Muhammad, if that is indeed the meaning in the Quran. | ||
{{Quote|1=[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jonah%202:6&version=NIV Jonah 2:6 NIV]|2=To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you brought my life up from the pit, O LORD my God.}} | {{Quote|1=[http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jonah%202:6&version=NIV Jonah 2:6 NIV]|2=To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you brought my life up from the pit, O LORD my God.}} | ||
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مَادَ It turned or twisted about, or became contorted and convulsed. (IḲṭṭ.) | مَادَ It turned or twisted about, or became contorted and convulsed. (IḲṭṭ.) | ||
[...] | [...] | ||
مَادَ, inf. n. مَيْدٌ and مَيَدَانٌ, It inclined to one side: as the earth is, in a trad., described to have done before the mountains were formed. (L.)}} | مَادَ, inf. n. مَيْدٌ and مَيَدَانٌ, '''It inclined to one side: as the earth is, in a trad., described to have done before the mountains were formed. (L.)'''}} | ||
The usage of this word further supports the interpretation that these verses refer to mountains anchoring the earth as a whole from moving in such a manner. | The usage of this word further supports the interpretation that these verses refer to mountains anchoring the earth as a whole from moving in such a manner. | ||