The Rosary is a devotional meditation in honor of the Virgin Mary, typically prayed silently while holding a beaded rosary necklace. The word rosary comes from Latin and means a garland or crown of roses, whose flower is used to symbolize the Virgin Mary. The Rosary consists of a number of specific prayers, such as the Apostles’ Creed, The Lord's Prayer, the Hail Mary, the Glory to the Father, and Hail, Holy Queen. As you say each prayer, you advance from one bead to the next with your rosary, and meditate on the Mysteries.
The traditional Rosary includes three categories of Mysteries: Joyful, Sorrowful, and Glorious. Each contains five individual Mysteries. In his 25th year as spiritual leader of the Church, Pope John Paul II added a fourth set of Mysteries: the Luminous Mysteries or “Mysteries of Light.” Each Mystery is considered while reciting the Rosary according to a set schedule:
While meditating on each Mystery, you recite a decade: one The Lord's Prayer (large bead), ten Hail Marys (small beads) and one Glory to the Father (before the next large bead).