Peggy Metta Sheehan takes up an excerpt from The Extended Discourse Records of Chan Master Hongzhi:

It cannot be practiced or actualized, because it is intrinsically complete. Others cannot tarnish it. It is thoroughly immaculate to its depth. Precisely at the place of immaculacy, fix your gaze upon it and thoroughly illuminate and relinquish everything. Experiencing this clarity, grounding yourself firmly, you will see that birth and death originally have not root or stem, and emerging and sinking are fundamentally without a trace. When your intrinsic splendor reaches its peak, it is empty, yet potent. When your original wisdom responds to conditions, it is quiescent, but resplendent. Genuinely arriving at this place where there is no middle or extremes, before or after, your practice begins to be one pervasive whole. On each and every occasion, the interaction of your sense faculties and objects is itself the preaching of Buddha Dharma transmitting the inexhaustible lamp. Everything emits great radiance, everything is performing the great work of accomplishing Buddhahood. Originally you do not need a hair’s breadth of external object. Clearly, this is a matter to be found within your own home.

Peggy Roshi comments:

Silent illumination is not a practice. Rather it is what you are: silent, utterly still, unmoving and empty, vast, bright and radiant.