Quite a few years ago, one my friends, Shreesha Karantha, told me this (imaginative) story about two friends in the Indian epic, Mahabharata - Karna and Duryodhana. I thought it showed the depth of understanding and excellent harmony two people can achieve, so my humble attempt at translating it to English:
One day, at the height of his power, Duryodhana the king had gone out on some chores, and his wife was alone in the palace. Karna came to visit the king, but as he was a close family friend stopped for a chat with the queen. Soon they began to play the game of dice, and it soon developed into a very relaxed game which they continued to play on the Diwan. For the sake of betting, the Queen bet her pearl necklace and Karna bet his golden ring. Eventually Karna won the game. By this time the mood was very relaxed, and queen had no intention of parting with her necklace. So she refused to give it to Karna, and Karna playfully tried to grab the necklace, and the queen jumped from the bed. Karna's hand struck the necklace and broke the thread, causing the pearls to scatter everywhere.
At this precise moment Duryodhana entered, and for a single second surveyed the whole scene - His wife's pale face in complete shock, pieces of the game of dice strewn all over the place, Karna's hand near his wife's neck, pearls dancing all over the floor, and his wife trying to escape from Karna. He just said:
"Karna, shall I give you the pearls in a bunch or around the string of a new necklace"?
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