| Kitáb-i-Íqán | 24 |
will surely come when the Nightingale of Paradise
will have winged its flight away from its earthly
abode unto its heavenly nest. Then will its melody
be heard no more, and the beauty of the rose cease
to shine. Seize the time, therefore, ere the glory of
the divine springtime hath spent itself, and the
Bird of Eternity ceased to warble its melody, that
thy inner hearing may not be deprived of
hearkening unto its call. This is My counsel unto
thee and unto the beloved of God. Whosoever
wisheth, let him turn thereunto; whosoever wisheth,
let him turn away. God, verily, is independent
of him and of that which he may see and witness.
These are the melodies, sung by Jesus, Son of
Mary, in accents of majestic power in the Ridván
of the Gospel, revealing those signs that must needs
herald the advent of the Manifestation after Him.
In the first Gospel according to Matthew it is
recorded: And when they asked Jesus concerning
the signs of His coming, He said unto them: "Immediately
after the oppression (1) of those days shall
the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give
her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and
the powers of the earth shall be shaken: and then
