World mountain

World mountain, also cosmic mountain, primeval mountain or primordial hill, is an old mythological concept, especially widespread in Asia, of a mountain in the centre of the world, which in cosmogony often arose from a small beginning and later assumed a terraced form. The world mountain can stand above the navel of the world or be located in the sky as the dwelling place of the gods (heaven mountain). The idea of a world centre is connected with the world tree and the world axis (axis mundi). Unlike a holy mountain, which is revered as the seat of the gods or ancestors, the world mountain does not have to be geographically located in a real mountain.