Does continually wanting to help others necessarily mean selfishness or attachment?

Not necessarily. Some people's wish to help does contain personal desires or a sense of superiority. But that does not mean everyone willing to help is like that. Examine where the intention comes from. A strong desire to help alone is not grounds to call it selfishness or attachment.

I agree that we need to cultivate our own hearts and understand principles for ourselves. Developing abilities also makes us better able to help others. But cultivating ourselves cannot stop at thinking. Interacting with people, seeing their hardships, and actually helping can themselves become processes through which we learn.

Someone who initially cannot deeply understand others' suffering may volunteer and see seriously ill people still striving to live. Being moved by this, they may begin to wonder whether they too can do more with their life. Helping can sometimes be precisely the opportunity through which we learn care and love.

I have volunteered myself. Through helping, I actually discovered my own value and strength. I used to feel ordinary and wonder what ability I had to help anyone. Only by doing it did I discover that helping one or two people is also a contribution. These experiences taught me that cultivating ourselves and helping others can be learned together in daily life.