Before explaning why we follow the mitzvot (pl), one must first understand what a mitzvah is. Although the word mitzvah is most often translated as 'commandment', this isn't an accurate translation. The more accurate translation is 'guideline'.
That being said, the mitzvot are the guidelines that HaShem (The Creator) gave the Jews for living life. We follow these mitzvot as a way to live our lives in a righteous manner.
mitzvot = מִצְווֹת
Why does Eurylochus object to obeying Odysseus?
obeying orders are conditioned reflexes
Judaism is centered on a path to righteous living rooted in the Torah, the 5 books attributed to Moses that make up the Torah and the start of what Christians call the Old Testament. The Jewish tradition identifies 613 mitzvot, commandments or laws given by God to the Children of Israel in the text of the Torah, and traditionally, Jews are defined by their relationship to these mitzvot. Jews generally value faith because it leads to righteous behavior, not because it is a prerequisite for salvation. The study of Jewish ethics grows from the study of how the mitzvot are to be applied in novel circumstances and how to resolve conflicts when obeying one mitzvah might be seen as violating of another.
obeying
A mitzvah is a good deed. The plural of mitzvah is mitzvot.
The mitzvot (Torah-commands).
"the 613 Mitzvot," or "Halacha"
There is no ranking of the mitzvot.
It is correctly spelt obey (follow commands or observe laws).
Disobeying.
By obeying instructions