Full Idea
Once a gentleman has seen animals alive, he cannot bear to see them die, and once having heard their cry, he cannot bear to eat their flesh. That is why the gentleman keeps his distance from the kitchen.
Gist of Idea
Avoid the animals you are going to eat, as it is hard once you have got to know them
Source
Mengzi (Mencius) (The Mengzi (Mencius) [c.332 BCE], 1.A.7)
Book Reference
Mencius: 'Mencius', ed/tr. Lau,D.C. [Penguin 1970], p.55
A Reaction
If you applied this to a Gestapo officer and his victims, it would obviously be the epitome of wickedness. But it is complex. Compassion is expected when we encounter suffering, but we are not obliged to seek out suffering. Or are we?