I'd say pretty well placed guess Ed. That makes sense as when the Mahdi, who was supposed to be Messianic died of typhus, a very earthly cause.
The Khaliph, his successor, had to find ways to keep the impetus of the jihad and keep the forces energized by keeping the Mahdi's magic and influence the driving force.
I believe this was the idea behind the heavily thuluth laden weaponry, and regalia as well as these kinds of events, and quite frankly seems to have achieved the desired results.
As I have understood, there were indeed Holy Men on the field who had various weapons and items to tend to the fallen and secure their passage to paradise through prescribed blessings and ritual.This was the purpose of some of the items and weapons that seemed less than battle worthy, again, as I have seen noted.
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