What does stanza 4 of Defeat by Kahlil Gibran mean?

It means despite "defeats" his spirit still carries up and onward, this is what he means by none shall hear "the beating of wings" and the "urging of seas" and of "mountains burning bright in the night".

It's not because of " only in our defeat that we understands can we really understand the depths of our being", it's *despite * it. This os because the fight he's interested in is not won in a single day, but is the same fight that Zarathrustha came down amongst the Persians burning with the fire of truth almost two and half millenia ago.

'Defeat' is the result of the resistance that an artist encounters when proposing the 'new'. A defense mechanism of society to the 'danger' that the artistic/poetic project poses. An indication of a successful artistic project and a great artist.

I realise this is a late response, but this is one of my favourite poems, so I thought I'd give my 2 cents.

When he refers to "My Defeat" he's humanizing failure as his "old companion" -- this being the overarching theme (that our failures are an intrinsic part of us). As opposed to defining what we can't do, failure shapes who we become.

Poetry's always open to different interpretations, but here's my own personal take of your highlighted lines...

You can view these three things as:

• The beating of wings = Peace (wings being symbolic of joy and freedom)
• The urging of seas = Challenge (the open sea being symbolic of journey and intrepidity)
• Mountains that burn in the night = Danger (fire being symbolic of... well, disaster)

So:

• My failures define my happiness and triumphs
• It's from my failures that I draw courage
• It's my failures that inform me of where dangers and threats lie

That interpretation's also in-beat with the preceding line: "You shall hear my songs (when I'm up) and my cries (when I'm trying) and my silences (when I'm beat)"

Great verse!

"My companion" castes Defeat as his old friend, one he is familiar with. He looks forward to sharing his songs, cries and silences with his familiar friend.

No one but his pal, Defeat is allowed to taunt him with the sounds of wings beating; meaning no one else is allowed to tease him with the idea of escape by flight.

No one else may tease him with the idea of escape over the vast seas or over mountain ranges that he might attempt.

And you alone shall climb my steep and rocky soul; Only you shall know my difficult and troubled soul. He is giving up and having done with it. No more fighting and will have no one but Defeat as his friend, taking it pretty hard.