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For four years, Heraclius had declared absolute and total war on the Jews. The Persians had abandoned them as well. In the years after the slaughter of the Jewish troops at the Golden Gate, Heraclius sought other ways to punish the Jews for the insolence. In addition to the first forced conversions in history to be sanctioned by the imperial government occurring throughout the Roman Empire, Heraclius sought to strike at the heart of their faith. In an affront reminiscent of the defiling of the Cathedral of Sana, he ordered the Temple Mount to be used as the city's latrines. Some aqueducts were rerouted to the Temple Mount at a slightly lower elevation, to allow a flow of water to the Temple Mount. This was not hard to do because in ancient times the water had been used to wash the blood of sacrifices away from the Temple mount. Heraclius also installed a beautiful statue of an unclothed lady, which according to Sefer Zerubavel, inspired further immoral deeds on the Temple Mount.

In the literature of the time, the Temple Mount was referred to as "House of filth near the market." The filth, "which was then all about the holy sanctuary, had settled on the steps of the gates so that it even came out into the streets in which the gate opened, and it had accumulated so greatly as almost to reach up the ceiling of the gateway." Years later, the Muslims would call the Church of the Anastasis al-qumamah, the Dungheap, because of the disrespect of the Christians towards the Temple Mount.

To the Judaic Nation, this was an insult. To the Sadduceans of Arabia this was a crisis. The Sadduceans were particular in cleanliness, equating cleanliness with the biblical concepts of Taharah, purity. Arabs traditions said that the ancient Israelites would cut off their skin, should any waste fall on it. The Arabs would not pray in the direction of a bathroom, nor go the bathroom while facing the holy places of Jerusalem or Mecca. The Rabbinites however continued to pray towards Jerusalem. This troubled the Prophet. In the end he was answered by a divine revelation which indicated that the faithful should not pray towards Jerusalem, only towards Mecca. Further, this would be the mark of distinction between his followers and others.

Dhu Nuwas was born of foreign descent; he adopted foreign customs and tried to unite the Arab tribes under a foreign banner, and failed. The Prophet Muhammed was an Arab. He was of the tribe of the Quraish; and they had been resident in Arabia for over six hundred years. Their version of Sadducean Judaism was closer to the heart of the Arabian tribes than any Persian custom. The Sura Al-Baqara (the sacrificial cow) was given at this time. It is a Sura written primary to a Jewish audience, yet the laws of Salat, Prayer; Zum, Fasting; Zakat, Charity; Haj, Pilgrimage and Jihad, Religious War reflect an intention to back away from the Prophets original embrace of Rabbinite custom and return to Sadducean custom. For example, the laws forbidding wine, and of mourning during Ramadhan (Sefirah) to include complete fasting during the day.

The Prophet envisioned an Umma (Judaic Nation) of the faithful that had different modes of religious worship. The non-Jews would follow the Mesanî, the seven laws of Noah. The Jews would keep the Sabbath and Kosher laws: "The Sabbath was appointed only for those who were distinguished by it, and the Lord will judge them on the Day of Resurrection according to their distinction." As there was a change of Qibla, there was a change in the war. Heraclius started his counter attack in 623 CE. from Armenia. Next year, in 624 CE, he entered Azerbaijan and destroyed Clorumia, the birthplace of Zoroaster, and ravaged the principal fire temple of Persia. This was the same when the Muslims their first victory at Badr.