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@Tavs said:
Can you help liberate other sentient beings when you have not finished working on one's self?

With certainty, no. But then it is very difficult to place another beings feet on the spiritual path. The most you can do is drop occasional hints, fingers pointing to the moon. And hope that someone will be receptive.

It reminds me of a story… Ram Dass and his guru Neem Karoli Baba were handing out photographs of the Baba, and Ram Dass noticed that his master seemed to be picking out all kinds of people of low prospects in life. He said, “How can you give your photograph to such low-lives?” Neem Karoli Babs replied, “if they can feel, even for a moment, that they too could be a great sadhu, a spiritual man, then that would be a very good thing. If just one in a hundred is inspired by the photograph to change his life, it will have served it’s purpose.”

@Tavs said:
Can you help liberate other sentient beings when you have not finished working on one's self?

Maybe not liberate, but I think you could help get them to where you are.

One of the categorizations of Buddhism talks about 3 types of Bodhisattva, king like, shepherd like and ferryman like. King like gets to enlightenment first then brings people along, Amitaba Buddha is the archetype. Shepherd like brings other to enlightenment before oneself, Avalokiteshvara is the archetype. Ferryman brings others along with oneself, not sure of which Buddha/bodhisattva is this kind.

It’s a good question… I’ve heard it has to do with the renunciation of possessions. When a monk leaves lay life, they renounce personal possessions, work, and even the idea of self-sufficiency. So going on the alms round serves as a reminder of this.

Another aspect of this is that it strengthens the bond between monastics and laypeople, both important parts of the sangha. The monastics practice humility and detachment, and the laypeople by giving dana gain merit and practice generosity.

To abandon the ego-thoughts, we need to abandon attachments, not desires. The desire to help others is good because it comes from letting go of the sense of self importance. This is obviously not a desire formed by egoistic thinking and comes from a pure heart.

Yes, but in order to wish to help someone, do you not need the notion "I" wish to help someone, or "I" am going to help someone, and therefore without gaining direct insight, is it not essential that a Buddhist has some sort of ego.

Metta to all sentient beings

If we abandon all our ego, then we must abandon desire. Which is fine if its unhealthy desires. However, what about the desire to help others ? or the desire to follow the Dharma, or other healthy desires. Surely we must need some sort of ego to be able to follow the Buddhist path in the first place. Hence, is it not vital that a person has some sort of say ego until they reach a stage on their path that has surpassed the need for it.

Metta to all sentient beings