Thousands of tourists from all over the world never miss a chance to gather in the Zhangye Dandia Landform Geological Park in Gansu, China, to marvel at the beauty of the Rainbow Mountains, a place which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site back in 2009.
These multicolor Rainbow Mountains, as people call them, are believed to be the same mountains that are mentioned in the Quran which are made of different shades present on the surface of planet Earth.
Here is what the Quran says,
“Do you not see that Allah sends down rain from the sky, and We produce thereby fruits of varying colors? And in the mountains are tracts, white and red of varying shades and (some) extremely black” (Surah Fatir verse 27)
Taking a view of these mountains from Google Earth, here is what we find:
Yes, white and red, and of varying shades!
Why are they of different colors?
It is believed that over the course of millions of years, several layers of rocks of varying types were settled on top of one another – this includes the red sandstone and several other colorful mineral deposits.
Due to the consistent movement of tectonic plates, some 40 to 50 million years ago, an Island collided with Eurasia (a combined continental mass of Europe and Asia).
This million years old impact was great enough to cause a geographical change in the region. Several mountain ranges were created during this rift, including the Himalayas.
The hidden beauty of the world
It’s crazy, to think of it, that there is so much about this world we still don’t know. The Lord has indeed made this planet extremely beautiful.
“Soon, we will show them Our signs in the regions (of the earth) and in their own souls until it becomes manifest to them that this (the Quran) is the Truth. Is it not enough that thy Lord doth witness all things?” (Surah Fusshilat verse 53)