Most of the ancient world was focused on the gods and the metaphysical explaining everything. And while the ancient Greeks did have a large pantheon of gods, Socrates and his fellow philosophers tried to figure out how the world works, why we are here somewhat independent of the gods. They tried to reason it through. They tried to talk it through, think about it from a rational point of view. And to get a flavor of that, here's a quote. True wisdom comes to each of us when we realize how little we understand about life, ourselves, and the world around us. So unlike many ancient societies that just tried to explain everything through the metaphysical or through the gods, here you have Socrates saying no, an ideal, true wisdom is when you appreciate how little we know, this form of intellectual humility.