Compassion is wanting someone to be free of suffering. Empathy is an evolked memory about ourself, not another person. Yet there is an empathy that comes from understanding the human condition. By itself, It is not an effective way to help another person. Compassion is not driven by our own emotional story or by emotions at all, it is driven by wisdom. When we understand how suffering come about, we're in a position if we're wise to help another person.