The “descendant nail” is a coffin nail attached with a small red cloth and is only used at funerals where there is family member to “Dan Fan” (担幡买水) for the deceased. The “descendant nail” will always be inserted on the deceased’s paper tablet until the end of the funeral. After the funeral, the “descendant nail” will be returned to the family members.
In Cantonese funeral customs, the “descendant nail” bear the meaning to bless the family, to expand the family tree members. There is no limit on how long one should keep the “descendant nail”. It can be a hundred days, a year, or three years depending on the family preference. The Taoist priest usually suggest to burn the “descendant nail” during the 100-day worship. However, if family would like to keep for a longer period, it can be suggested to keep till any of the family members gets married, after which the “descendant nail” can be burned.
广东丧事习俗 – 子孙钉
子孙钉其实是一支插着小红布的棺材钉。子孙钉只是用于有亲人为逝者担幡买水的丧礼中。 这子孙钉是会一直被插在先人纸灵牌上，放置到丧礼结束那天。在纸灵牌火化前会把子孙钉取出交给家人已作收藏。
在广东丧事习俗里，子孙钉的用意是保佑家族开枝散叶，子孙满堂。收藏的时限是没有规定的。可以是百日，对年，或三年。道长通常会提议百日拜祭时一起火化掉。如果家人想要继续收藏久一点，道长也会提议收藏到先人的子孙成家后再把子孙钉火化掉。
