Opening a restaurant can be a very spiritual business. Some people bring in priests or Buddhist lamas, while others use candles and crystals.

At Hogo, a Tiki god watches over.

Tom Brown, co-owner of the restaurant and rum bar opening at 5 p.m. tonight at 1017 7th St. NW, says he can be a superstitious guy. His next door bar The Passenger has a figurine of the elephant-faced Hindu deity Ganesha, which is meant to remove obstacles and bring success.

So for Hogo, Tom’s brother (and mixologist) Derek Brown got him a “Money Tiki” figurine during a recent trip to Hawaii to help bring fortune to the new venture. Taped to the back is a shell fossil that was mysteriously sent along with the Moroccan goatskin wall sconces that now hang in the bar. “I thought it was hardware. It just came in the plastic bag tapped to the sconces,” Tom says. “It was random, but cool.”

In the weeks leading up to the opening, Tom has been moving the Tiki god around the room to spread its good aura.

“The idea is you put it in your bar and it helps you to make money and be successful. We know what helps you to be successful is have a good product and have people like it,” Derek says. “But it doesn’t hurt to have a little Tiki god.”

Hopefully, that karma has a long shelf life. The developer slated to buy the buildings containing The Passenger and Hogo says the bars probably won’t be able to stay open when construction begins in about a year.

Read more about Hogo here.