Do not take the precepts if you are not ready.

This post is not to scare anyone about anything or put fear into anyone. This is strictly to bring awareness.

I make this post in compassion and concern. I am coming from experience and having dealt with and having seen living examples of people that have committed inconceivably heavy karma. I have seen the effects of unrepentable karma, studied it and even helped people in such a state.

This unrepentable type of karma I am talking about is the heaviest class of karmic retributions one can create. This karma is in a class of its own and is the most dreadful and destructive thing. Part of the offenses which generate such a karmic retribution are breaking the major precepts after having taken them.

It is difficult to gauge whether you are ready or not, but a good measure would be to analyze how much are you struggling with the affliction that is against the precepts (lust, intoxication etc.).

And if you have already taken a precept, but seem to be close to breaking it, renounce it. It is better to renounce it and not break it than keep it and break it and then deal with the effect.

Another helpful piece of advice is that it would be good that you have already done a great amount of practice of restraint, fasting and such. Almost like keeping the precepts without having taken them and made the vow.

Only with good examination and a realistic idea of your general state make the choice to keep the precepts.

Also keep in mind that you can live a moral life without having taken the precepts and can even progress in the Dharma. There are other ways of creating enormous amounts of good karma.

The precepts are no joke, and again, a parajika is of the class of negative karmas that you can make which are the heaviest. A parajika is essentially unrepentable, you can't just repent regularly and clean it up like other offenses.

An average person/beginner shouldn't take the precepts unless they have such roots in them that signal with enormous certainty that they will be able to keep them without breaking them.

And to finish this post with a short summarized chunk of advice...

Before you take the precepts, study the Buddhadharma and the Buddhist cosmology, gain evidence on both, understand and study the hell realms, learn what entails breaking a major precept, analyze yourself thoroughly and if possible get a proper examination from a proper Buddhist monk/master, study karma thoroughly, practice self-restraint, practice fasting, practice the precepts without taking them, get to a point of absolute certainty that the Buddhadharma is the path you want to follow, work on thoroughly and slowly eliminating the ego, meditate, develop a more empty mind, develop a more spacious and open mind, develop a pure mind, work on compassion, work on emotionality and emotions, work on a mindset that is focused on making thoroughly thought out and really rational choices, work on inner-stability and after all this get to the discussion of the idea of taking the precepts.

Don't make any choices on emotion, feeling or thought. Gain a realistic image of reality and yourself, think it through, gain deep understanding of the matter, gain proper advice and/or guidance from proper people, study other people's experience, listen to truly wise people and afterwards get to making the choice.

And a final piece of life-saving advice: Never be too sure of yourself, your emotions, your thoughts, your judgement and knowledge, unless you have a really really really really good reason to, or have strong evidence to support such a mentality.