Feel like indulging in a spot of outdoor activity. Try the Chandreshwar Bhootnath temple in Quepem, South Goa. The excursion will not only result in some food for your soul, but also help you cut down on some calories, owing to the fact that it’s located atop a hillock called the Chandranath hill, which you need to trek up.
Spiritual seekers and enthusiasts prefer a trek on a full moon night, when the whole countryside is bathed in the mystic pearly light. The highlight of the Chandreshwar Bhootnath temple is the huge Shivalinga inside the sanctum sanctorum, which is a natural rocky outcropping, but one, believers say, which possesses a divine power.
Others prefer to come here during Hanuman Jayanti, along with Dushera and Mahashivratri, when the temple is bedecked and the grounds are agog with worshippers.
According to historians, the temple was built by the rulers of the Bhoja dynasty way back in the 8th century, who incidentally had named the region Chandrapur, after the deity they worshipped.
The Chandreshwar Bhootnath temple is located around 14 kms from Margao town, in a place called Paroda. Alongside is another smaller temple where the main deity is Bhootnath, a deity named after the lord of ghosts (literally translated).
Outdoor excursion
Chandreshwar Bhootnath temple in Quepem
