...A fuel-less flame is nothing but a wraith, However wrought, if unsustained by passion.

The lines use the metaphor of fire to argue that any achievement, art, or aspiration requires an animating inner force. A “fuel-less flame” suggests something that may look like fire but cannot truly burn; calling it a “wraith” emphasizes insubstantiality and the illusion of vitality. The closing clause—“if unsustained by passion”—frames passion as the sustaining fuel that makes effort real and enduring. Read broadly, the couplet contrasts mere technique (“however wrought”) with the emotional or moral energy that gives work authenticity, persistence, and impact.