Rav Baruch Ber, ztz״l, was once about to go from one room to another when he realized that a young woman was standing there. She was perfectly modestly dressed, yet he stood afar and waited, being unwilling to even walk past her. Eventually, family members realized the problem and politely asked the young woman to move to a less conspicuous spot.
He once arrived at a wedding and became aware that the ladies were not dressed modestly enough. He instantly shut his eyes and had to be led like a blind man until he exited that room.
Rav Elchanan Wasserman, ztz״l, acquired the habit of going with head bent in order not to look beyond his daled amos; so did Rav Reuven Dov Dessler, ztz״l, that exemplar of Kelm mussar and father of the famed Eliezer Dessler, ztz״l. Rav Elya Lopian, ztz״l, would never turn his head to the right or the left when in the street. The Alter of Kelm, ztz״l, was known to have complete mastery over all his bodily movements. His eyes never looked to the sides; you could have thought they were nailed in position.
When Rav Shimon Shkop, ztz״l, went for walks with his talmidim in the summertime, they noticed that if a person’s shadow should fall across his path, he would pause and wait for it to pass, in case it was a woman.
It once happened in the Mir Yeshiva in Europe that a couple of bachorim slipped out of a lengthy seder “illegally”. No one noticed and they were soon out in the sunshine, where they suddenly noticed the mashgiach Rav Yerucham Levovitz, ztz״l, walking straight towards them.
They were afraid of questioning and a reprimand, but the eldest of the group allayed their fears. “Just follow me,” he whispered. Stepping slightly to the side and with the others close on his heels, he strode straight past the mashgiach without incident. “I just knew that in the street he would never raise his eyes off the ground,” he explained to his mightily relieved companions.
The Vilna Gaon, ztz״l, from the age of bar mitzvah never glanced outside his daled amos. When he needed to go out into the street, he first reviewed the Mesilas Yesharim chapter on zehirus (watchfulness) thirteen times over.
The legacy of our holy tzaddikim is truly awesome and inspiring.