Jalna which he successfuly plundered and set on fire. Entering the Godavari valley, he plundered Paithan, Beed and other Mughal-occupied towns along the river banks. Instead of progressing further he turned back towards Sinhagad to deposit the accumulated loot when his burdened army was ambushed by Zulfikar Khan. Rajaram tried to evacuate with all speed, but could shake off the Mughal pursuit owing to the baggage. In this disastrous retreat the Rajaram's resourcefulness and courage alone saved his army. Although half dead with fatigue, Rajaram fought a continuous series of rearguard actions for fifty miles and at last brought his command, reduced but not destroyed, to the welcome shelter of Sinhgad. The hardships and exposure of the chase had aggravated a weakness of Rajaram’s lungs contracted at Jinji. After some days high fever set in with frequent hemorrhages. Knowing his end was near, Rajaram called upon his council and commanded them not to relax their efforts in the war of liberation until King Shahu had been freed and the Mughals driven from the land of the Marathas. Rajaram thus died of lung disease in 1700 at Sinhagad near Pune in Maharashtra leaving behind widows and infants. Rajaram’s funeral ceremonies were performed by Jivajiraje Bhonsle, the direct descendant of Vithoji Bhonsle, younger brother of Maloji Bhosale and Chhatrapati Shivaji’s great uncle. To keep alive Chhatrapati Rajaram's memory, Ramchandra Bavdekar built a temple to Shiva on the edge of Sinhgad fort. The temple was handsomely endowed with lands and money and may still be seen in undiminished splendour. Janakibai, one of his widows, committed sati upon Rajaram's death. Another widow Ambikabai who was at Vishalgad, also performed Sati, but only after she heard the news of his passing three days later. Many folk tales are centered on her powers of piety. Rajaram's widow Tarabai then proclaimed her own young son, Shivaji II as the Chhatrapati Shivaji prophesied by Shivaji I destined to conquer all India from Attock to Rameshwaram, going against the popularly held notion that it was Shahu I (whose original name was Shivaji) who was to be the Shivaji prophesied about, and ruled as her son's regent. However, the release of Shahu, by the successors of Aurangzeb led to an internecine conflict between Tarabai and Shahu with the latter emerging as the successful claimant to the Maratha throne of Satara. Tarabai established a separate seat at Kolhapur and installed her