This verse is treated by some commentators as the second half of a sort of unofficial verse-set that begins with the previous verse, 91,7 . Whether or not the two verses should really be considered so tightly bound together, they have notable affinities of structure and theme . In {91,7} too, we move from the breast to the heart. The strikingly parallel structures of the two lines feature centrally placed nouns, 'heart' and 'breath'. Both are so positioned that they can be read with either the clause before ('the X [itself] is a shame if') or the clause after ('it [in general] is a shame if the X'). The difference in meaning is of course not great, but still the back-and-forth oscillation of the possible readings is a small pleasure in its own right. The word not only means a 'fire-place' of some unspecified kind, but also has a well-established meaning of 'fire-temple', in a Zoroastrian sense; for discussion of this usage, see 173,10 . The opposition between 'disgrace' in the first half of the line, and the honored or revered status of a fire-temple in the second half, gives an extra touch of piquancy to the verse. The use of the conspicuously Persian for 'fire' in the second line also strengthens the (Iranian) Zoroastrian connection; in the same metrical space Ghalib could easily have used instead. The progression from the breast to the heart, and from the heart to the breath, is what really energizes the verse: the parallel structures also become sequential. And the whole sequence leads to the breath, and emphasizes its central, and perhaps even religious, importance. (If seems confusing, see 15,6 .) graphics/firebreath.jpg