Abstract
The Tausug have 1000 years adat and further enriched by Islam in the middle of the 13th century. Their greatest political contribution was the establishment of the Sultanate of Sulu or the Sultaniyyah sin Lupa Sug in 1450 A.D. The era of the sultanate was the golden age all over Sulu. This was the era the sultanate’s founding fathers developed their padduman or political ideology as reflected in the Tausug concept of state known as hula-bangsa-agama. This concept however is something shrouded from the minds of the modern Tausug and is no longer actively advocated despite the fact the concept of hula-bangsa-agama is the enduring bawgbug (principles) of the Tausug. Sultaniyyah sin Lupa Sug can be likened to a building. The foundation was destroyed but its materials are still intact.