Question: I would like to ask what is the meaning of keeping silent while keeping the 8 precepts?

Keeping precepts is practical, not impractical. Keeping percepts is physical and verbal actions. Thats why, whether we are repreating or saying precepts or not, we should keep precepts by ourselves

As a layperson, I already practice silence by goenka. We are not allowed to speak for 9 days, only the last day. The intention of noble silence is to detach from speaking. If we cannot stop speaking to the others, but we cannot detach from speaking to others.

Not only speaking, but also eating, doing business, all our actions need to be stopped, not to reject, but to detach from this action. In this way, we will be doing or not doing only with attachment in the mind. Detachment from speaking is right, rejecting speaking is wrong. We need to practice noble silence not to reject speaking but to detach from speaking.