Why does 2+2=4? What math teaches us about deep reality

Just yesterday I was thinking about it. Who will decide we are not using circular reasonings for these seemingly nonsensical things (to my non math loving brain). I read a proof of why 2 is greater than 1 and I have forgotten about it but I just don't like such things. Why are we proving definitions and who will keep out the circular reasonings when math is being built from the ground up. I view math ppl with lot of suspicion because they have intuition and they don't explain but who would say that their collective intuition is wrong (if it is). That's tyrannical for the non math people