101 Reasons Why We Left Islam – Chapter 3: Islam and Science – Reason 35
“He has placed into the earth firm mountains, so it does not shake with you, as well as rivers, and pathways so you may find your way.” Quran 16:15
It does not take a genius to see from these maps that mountains do NOT prevent earthquakes. In fact, many mountains (even underwater mountains) are formed from tectonic plate movement. Because of that, you are likely to find that earthquakes are more frequent in mountainous or near mountainous areas. It’s the same reason why Iran and Turkey have more earthquakes than Saudi or the Saharah desert – and why south Europe and Central Asia have more earthquakes than central Australia or West Africa. Mountains never stopped or slowed earthquakes. When a tectonic plate shakes, everything above it shakes! And what is more, there are more frequent Earthquakes wherever you find mountains.
Research published in a peer reviewed journal found that “Nine out of ten disastrous earthquakes happened in mountainous areas.”
https://www.jstor.org/stable/3673126?seq=1
So, why does the Quran claim Allah created mountains to stop earthquakes? Because this is what 7th century desert people used to believe and as such this is what the Prophet used to believe.
Issue 35.1: How can we claim that the Quran is from an all knowing-god, when it makes scientific claims that are clearly wrong? There is absolutely no dispute among geologists that the formation of mountains is due to tectonic movement of the Earth crust. Where mountains form, there is a much higher risk of earthquakes than where there are no mountains. And there is academic research that proves this fact.
Islamic Excuses:
Issue 35.1: The Quran is a book of signs and not science. This verse could be a poetic description of mountains and earthquakes. It could be linked to the description of the Earth’s creation. At the time of the Earth’s creation, there were many more earthquakes, and it was the settling of the Earth’s creation that meant more mountains were created. As such, the creation of the mountains is part of the Earth’s stabilising process.
Our response: The earlier verses speak about Allah sending rain for drinking (16:10), growing of crops (16:11), the rotation of the Sun and Moon (16:12), the different colours we see (16:13), and the plentiful of fish in the sea (16:14). The verses are not talking about the early creation of the Earth when none of these existed. The Earth started as a hot molten ball of fire. By the time all the above had existed, the mountains had already formed. But then the Prophet did not know this and therefore, Allah did not know it. Finally, the poetic aspect cannot justify making such a ridiculous claim. The same verse could poetically say that mountains do not prevent earthquakes or that earthquakes are not mentioned at all! This is a desert dweller trying to justify why a god created mountains that are hard to ‘pass through’ instead of flat plains.
Final Thought:
Had the Prophet lived in a mountainous area, he would have had a very different view of the world from hearing stories being passed down of generations who experienced earthquakes. The one single fact that cannot be disputed here is that the Quran got this fact completely wrong. The mountains are not ‘placed there’ to stop the earth-shaking. Also, if you have not spotted that in the same verse, there are two other claims that are not substantiated. The claim is that rivers and paths were created by Allah to allow safe passage of humans! Rivers are created naturally (or artificially through water diversions) on Earth as early as 3000 years before Islam. By their flat nature, they create paths in the land. Pathways are man-made from repeated passage through these places and, in modern times, created by humans through roads and tunnels. While these are yet more reasons to challenge the claim that the Quran is from a god, we feel the mountain one is sufficient for this reason.