It rarely happens that a photo opportunity for the internet age is tailor-made for a philosophical quote from imperial Rome. But when India’s Narendra Modi dropped by his Pakistani counterpart’s estate in Lahore on Christmas Day, it might have been an appropriate moment for Nawaz Sharif to recall Seneca.
Mr Modi’s chummy visit seemed to dramatically indicate that the new year would mean a new beginning in neighbourly relations after 68 years of disagreements, badmouthing, wars and skirmishes of all sorts. But Mr Sharif, who was prime minister when another Indian leader, Atal Behari Vajpayee, uniquely journeyed to see him on a bus, could have told Mr Modi that every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end. And that in this Senecan fragment lies a world of wisdom especially for South Asia.
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