Disclaimer: This translation does not guarantee complete accuracy, please confirm with the original page text.
The compassion of an ignorant person is when, seeing a creature suffering from thirst, hunger, or other pain, he is filled with anxiety due to compassion and desires to help. The compassion of a wise person, however, is a slight sorrow in the mind when observing the world immersed in the ocean of birth, while dwelling in the lower realms (i.e., when he himself is in the lower stages of spiritual development).
This is the nature of compassion. When someone sees a creature suffering from thirst, hunger, or pain, and feels sorrow in his heart, and accepts that creature with compassion, that is compassion.
For example, an ignorant being, seeing someone suffering from intense thirst, hunger, or severe illness, becomes anxious, thinking, "How can I help this person?" and feels compassion. A wise person, however, not being attached to his own feelings, does not become agitated by suffering, but instead helps as much as possible, and feels a special sense of compassion and detachment when seeing someone suffering. This is the meaning of the sutra.