Mountains as Earth Stabilizers
The Quran describes mountains as "pegs" with deep roots - confirmed by modern geology and isostasy.
أَلَمْ نَجْعَلِ الْأَرْضَ مِهَادًا وَالْجِبَالَ أَوْتَادًا
Alam naj'alil-arḍa mihādan wal-jibāla awtādā
“Have We not made the earth a resting place? And the mountains as stakes?”
610-632 CE
The verse describing this phenomenon was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)
Time Gap
1,257+ years
Before scientific confirmation
1889 CE
Clarence Dutton confirmed: Isostasy and Mountain Root Systems
The Quran uses the Arabic word "awtad" (stakes/pegs) to describe mountains. This is scientifically accurate - mountains are not simply protrusions sitting on the Earth's surface, but have deep roots extending into the lithosphere, much like a peg or stake driven into the ground.
The principle of isostasy, discovered in 1889, confirms that mountains have roots proportional to their height above the surface. The Earth's crust is thickest under mountain ranges and thinnest under oceanic basins. These deep roots help balance and stabilize continental masses.
The Quran also mentions in multiple verses (16:15, 21:31, 31:10) that mountains help prevent the earth from shaking or shifting - a role that modern geology attributes to the stabilizing effect of deep mountain roots on tectonic plates.
Phenomenon
Isostasy and Mountain Root Systems
Discovered By
Clarence Dutton
Year Discovered
1889
Time Gap
1,257+ years
The concept of isostasy, established by Clarence Dutton in 1889, describes how Earth's crust floats on the denser, semi-fluid mantle below. Mountains have deep "roots" extending far below the surface - much like icebergs have most of their mass below water.
The Quran describes mountains as "awtad" (pegs/stakes), which accurately depicts mountains having deep roots that anchor them. Mount Everest, for example, has a root extending approximately 125 km into the mantle. These roots help stabilize the Earth's crust.
Additionally, Quran 16:15 states: "And He has cast into the earth firmly set mountains, lest it shift with you" - describing mountains' role in crustal stability.
Sources & References
4 sources cited on this page