Short answer
Barsisa was a devout worshipper among the Children of Israel who, according to reports from early commentators, was led step by step by Shaytan into zina, then murder, and finally prostrating to Shaytan, who then abandoned him. It is a tafsir report of the kind scholars call Isra'iliyyat, told to explain 59:16, not a hadith of the Prophet ﷺ.
The story is not a point of creed and no ruling rests on it. Scholars use it as an illustration of 59:16 and of how Shaytan leads people by small steps. The lessons it teaches, such as the ban on a man being alone with a non-mahram woman, are proven by authentic texts on their own.
The four schools agree on this.
Explanation
Allah describes the hypocrites who encouraged the Banu Nadir and then deserted them as "like the example of Satan when he says to man, Disbelieve. But when he disbelieves, he says, Indeed, I am disassociated from you. Indeed, I fear Allah, Lord of the worlds" (59:16). Early commentators, among them reports traced to Ali ibn Abi Talib and Ibn Abbas, illustrated the verse with the story of a monk later named Barsisa.
In the version most often told, Barsisa worshipped for years in a hermitage. Three brothers going on a journey left their sister in his care. Shaytan made each step seem small: bring her food, then sit near her to talk, then closer. He fell into zina and she became pregnant. Shaytan then whispered that he would be exposed, and told him to kill her and bury her. When the brothers learned the truth and he faced punishment, Shaytan appeared and offered to save him if he prostrated to him. He prostrated, and Shaytan said, "I am disassociated from you." The details differ between narrations, and the chains are those of tafsir reports, not of sahih hadith. Stories like this about the Children of Israel are called Isra'iliyyat: they may be told as lessons, but they are neither confirmed nor denied as fact, and nothing in belief or law rests on them.
The lessons match clear texts:
- "Do not follow the footsteps of Satan" (24:21). Shaytan rarely starts with the great sin. He starts with a small step.
- The Prophet ﷺ said no man should be alone with a woman except with a mahram present.
- Worship does not make anyone safe from falling. Ask Allah for steadfastness and never trust your own strength.
- Shaytan always abandons those who follow him (14:22).
See Why did Allah create Shaytan? and What is a mahram?
The evidence
Quran, Surah Al-Hashr 59:16
كَمَثَلِ ٱلشَّيْطَٰنِ إِذْ قَالَ لِلْإِنسَٰنِ ٱكْفُرْ فَلَمَّا كَفَرَ قَالَ إِنِّى بَرِىٓءٌۭ مِّنكَ إِنِّىٓ أَخَافُ ٱللَّهَ رَبَّ ٱلْعَٰلَمِينَ ﴿١٦﴾
[The hypocrites are] like the example of Satan when he says to man, "Disbelieve." But when he disbelieves, he says, "Indeed, I am disassociated from you. Indeed, I fear Allah, Lord of the worlds."
The verse the story of Barsisa is told to explain.
Quran, Surah An-Noor 24:21
۞ يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ لَا تَتَّبِعُوا۟ خُطُوَٰتِ ٱلشَّيْطَٰنِ ۚ وَمَن يَتَّبِعْ خُطُوَٰتِ ٱلشَّيْطَٰنِ فَإِنَّهُۥ يَأْمُرُ بِٱلْفَحْشَآءِ وَٱلْمُنكَرِ ۚ وَلَوْلَا فَضْلُ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَتُهُۥ مَا زَكَىٰ مِنكُم مِّنْ أَحَدٍ أَبَدًۭا وَلَٰكِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يُزَكِّى مَن يَشَآءُ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌۭ ﴿٢١﴾
O you who have believed, do not follow the footsteps of Satan. And whoever follows the footsteps of Satan - indeed, he enjoins immorality and wrongdoing. And if not for the favor of Allah upon you and His mercy, not one of you would have been pure, ever, but Allah purifies whom He wills, and Allah is Hearing and Knowing.
Shaytan leads people by small steps.
Sahih al-Bukhari 5233
Sahih... لا يخلون رجل بامرأة إلا مع ذي محرم ...
"No man should be alone with a woman except with a mahram present."
The authentic rule behind one of the story's main lessons.
Sahih al-Bukhari 3461
Sahih... بلغوا عني ولو آية وحدثوا عن بني إسرائيل ولا حرج ...
"Convey from me, even a single verse, and narrate from the Children of Israel, and there is no harm."
Permits telling such stories as lessons, which is why scholars relate them without treating them as confirmed.
Where the ruling is recorded
- Tafsir al-Tabari, Commentary on Surah al-Hashr, verse 16. Records the reports about the worshipper and Shaytan.
- Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Commentary on Surah al-Hashr, verse 16. Retells the story and notes its chains.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.