Acquaint yourself with fewer people, and as a result, you will backbite less (frequently).

—Sufyān al-Thawrī [d. 161H/778CE]

(Read on pg 149, Salaahud-Deen ibn ‘Alee ibn ‘Abdul-Maujood, The Biography of Sufyaan Ath-Thauree. Darussalam Publishers. Riyadh:2005.)