The oracle was a slave-girl from the outskirts of the city of
Harran. At the time of making her prophecy concerning Sasi she belonged to a man named Bel-ahu-usur. She was not actually a professional prophetess nor employed in a temple. or the "maid-servant from the House of Sasi". In 671 BC, shortly after
Esarhaddon successfully conquered Egypt, the oracle claimed to have received a divine message from the god
Nusku and proclaimed
Sasi as the
king of Assyria, ecstatically uttering the prophecy "This is the word of the god Nusku: Kingship belongs to Sasi. I shall destroy the name and the seed of
Sennacherib!". The oracle thus spoke the supposed words of Nusku directly, unlike most other prophecies and as if she was being possessed by the god and acted as his mouthpiece. Sasi was an Assyrian official and may have been a descendant of one of the earlier Assyrian kings. The oracle is believed to have uttered the prophecy in the vicinity of Harran, probably inside a temple. The Assyrian court official Nabu-rehtu-usur quickly reported the prophecy to Esarhaddon and advised him to verify the accuracy of the prophecy, particularly since it had been spoken by a non-professional and that there had also been prophecies from other deities more supportive of Esarhaddon's reign. Nevertheless, as the supposed word of a god, the prophecy was concerning and it was particularly threatening for Esarhaddon since his conquest of Egypt had also been prophesied by an oracle in Harran, lending prophecies from the city a certain degree of trustworthiness. Esarhaddon was unable to bring the oracle to court since she placed herself under the protection of Sasi, who was at Harran at the time. The oracle remained by Sasi's side throughout the duration of their conspiracy as one of the two key figures of their planned uprising. Sasi gained powerful supporters and followers throughout the Assyrian Empire over a very short period of time; the personal charisma of the oracle was probably instrumental in his rapid rise in power. Assyrian documents state that she continued to be "enraptured" and speak good words of Sasi following her initial prophecy. Esarhaddon was aware of her importance to the conspiracy and is recorded to have engaged in unsuccessful plots to kidnap her. The conspirators were defeated through some means in 670 BC and large numbers of Assyrian officials and magnates who had supported Sasi were captured and executed. Unless they were able to escape abroad, The oracle and Sasi may have been captured and executed at this time. == Impact ==