What, exactly, are Mitzvot?  People like to translate the word as "commandments" or "divine commands", but they're actually "bridges", or "groupifiers" (a made up word:).  A mitzvah is a tool you use to create a bridge or group connector between you and the root of all being, allowing you to actually become more conscious, as Hashem's larger self fuses with you, and then flows through you into the finite platform we call "existence".