Koon Pandian had embraced Jainism from Shaivism,[4] but his wife, Mangayarkkarasiyar, and his minister, Kulachirai Nayanar, were both Shaivites.
The Tamil poet Sekkizhar honoured Koon Pandiyan, Kulachirai and Mangaiarkkarasi by naming them among the 63 Nayanars in Periya Puranam.
[1] According to a Shaivite legend, when the Jains in Samanatham refused to convert to Shaivism, the king ordered their killings with the consent of Sambandar.
[5] Around 8,000 Jains were said to have been killed by impalement in which the victims were forcefully put over sharp, tall, conical structures in sitting posture.
[7][8] Koon Pandiyan is said to have died without a legitimate heir, and after his death, a number of claimants fought with each other to control the kingdom.