The Function of the Five Precepts' Precept Substance

The Three Refuges are not equivalent to receiving the Five Precepts. Receiving the precepts entails obtaining the precept body, whereas taking refuge alone does not grant the precept body of the Five Precepts. The precept body serves to prevent violations of the precepts and is guarded by precept-protecting deities. It acts as a defense against wrongdoing, restraining evil, shielding one from or reducing the karmic retribution for evil deeds, thereby accelerating spiritual progress. If one violates the precepts immediately after receiving them, it indicates that the precept body was not attained. The failure to obtain the precept body is due to one's own unrepented karmic offenses, which create an obstruction during the precept-receiving ceremony. It is necessary to repent and purify these offenses anew before receiving the precepts again, repeating the process until the precept body is attained.

If the master who confers the precepts upon you has themselves violated the precepts and lost their own precept body, then you will likewise fail to obtain the precept body when receiving the precepts from them. Therefore, to ensure certainty, one may choose to receive the precepts multiple times. If the precept-conferring master possesses good cultivation and virtuous conduct, and receives the support and protection of the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and Dharma-protecting deities, then the blessing power during the precept-receiving ceremony will be greater, the spiritual response more profound, the transformation after receiving the precepts more significant, and the progress in one's spiritual cultivation will be comparatively faster.