Learn to Pray the Rosary

The Rosary is a method of prayer which involves contemplating certain events in the life of Jesus while reciting short prayers. Often a set of beads resembling a necklace with a crucifix attached, referred to as a rosary, is used as a guide for the prayers.

This website will help you learn how to pray the Rosary and, if you want, to memorize its components.

Keep in mind - not everyone prays the Rosary in the exact same way. Praying the Rosary is an ancient tradition, but it has evolved some over time, and there are some slight variations in how the prayer is said.

Here you will learn the most common way to pray the Rosary today. We will also point out where there is some flexibility, clarify some things that can be confusing, and give you an easy reference page you can return to as you learn to pray the Rosary.

We are not getting into details here! The point is just to help you get comfortable with the prayer, so you can pray it and start receiving the immense benefits and graces that flow from regular prayer of the Rosary. For details, I recommend Rosary Center & Confraternity or asking Magisterium AI.

Introductory Overview

  • Start at the crucifix and move up and around the rosary in either direction.

  • Pause at each bead and say a certain prayer.

  • The larger beads are for praying the Our Father, while the smaller beads are for praying the Hail Mary.

  • The text of all prayers said during the Rosary is on this page.

  • As you pray, you contemplate certain important events from the life of Jesus Christ - these events are referred to as "mysteries."

  • Some prayers do not have beads. For Beginner's Rosary purposes, the diagram on this website shows beads for these prayers. This is merely for learning purposes - the beads are not present on actual rosaries.

  • The Rosary has core components and some supplemental components. The core components are the essential elements of the prayer. The method set forth below, including the supplemental components, is the most common way to say the prayer today.

The Diagram

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The Method

Introduction

  • Start at the crucifix and make the Sign of the Cross.

  • Saying the Apostle's Creed here is common, but this is not a core element of the prayer.

  • Pray the Our Father at the first large bead. This is a core element of the Rosary.

  • Asking for the gifts of Faith, Hope, and Charity, pray the Hail Mary on each of the next three beads.

  • Say the Glory Be. This prayer is repeated several times during the Rosary, and is a core element of the Rosary, but there is no separate bead for this prayer.

The Mysteries

  • Now you encounter a pattern of one Our Father bead followed by 10 Hail Mary beads.

  • Each of these sets of beads is referred to as "a decade." The Rosary has five decades.

  • Before the Our Father bead, call to mind the first mystery. If you are in a group, typically someone announces the mystery to the group.

  • There are four sets of mysteries containing five mysteries each.

  • The four sets are the Joyful Mysteries, the Glorious Mysteries, the Sorrowful Mysteries, and the Luminous Mysteries.

  • Each day of the week has a set of mysteries prescribed for the faithful to reflect upon.

  • After you call to mind the first mystery, keep it in mind going forward as you pray the Our Father on the Our Father bead.

  • Continue reflecting upon the mystery as you pray the Hail Mary on each of the following ten Hail Mary beads.

  • After the last Hail Mary, pray the Glory Be. There is no separate bead for this prayer.

  • Pray the Fatima Prayer. This is very common, but technically not a core element of the prayer, and there is no separate bead for this prayer.

  • Repeat this pattern of mystery, Our Father, Hail Mary (x10), Glory Be, and Fatima Prayer for the remaining four decades.

Conclusion

  • To conclude, there are two additional prayers and finally the Sign of the Cross.

  • It is common to say both of the concluding prayers today.

  • Neither concluding prayer is a core element of the Rosary, and neither one has a separate bead.

  • The first concluding prayer is Hail Holy Queen.

  • The second concluding prayer is just called "Concluding Prayer."

  • Both of these prayers are on the long side and may take a bit to memorize, and they are supplemental components, so it is ok if you do not say them when praying the Rosary but it is great when you do. Add them in when you can!

  • Make the Sign of the Cross.

An Abundance of Graces

  • And you're done! Great job.

  • Praying the Rosary daily is amazing.

  • Praying the Rosary with others is amazing.

  • If you cannot pray the full Rosary, praying even one decade can bring tremendous peace, wisdom, truth, and other graces from our Lord.

Mystery Reference Beads

The gray mystery reference beads in the inner chain of the diagram will help you know 1) which set of mysteries to focus on any given day, and 2) what the five mysteries are in that day’s set of mysteries.

The beads in the bottom-right section of the inner chain tell you which set of mysteries to focus on that day:

  • SG - Sunday - Glorious Mysteries

  • MJ - Monday - Joyful Mysteries

  • TS - Tuesday - Sorrowful Mysteries

  • WG - Wednesday - Glorious Mysteries

  • TL - Thursday - Luminous Mysteries

  • FS - Friday - Sorrowful Mysteries

  • SJ - Saturday - Joyful Mysteries

Continuing around counterclockwise are four sets of beads that tell you what the five mysteries are in each of the four sets:

  • G - Glorious

    • RJ - The Resurrection of Jesus

    • AJ - The Ascension of Jesus

    • HS - The Descent of the Holy Spirit

    • AM - The Assumption of Mary

    • CM - The Coronation of Mary

  • J - Joyful

    • A - The Annunciation

    • V - The Visitation

    • N - The Nativity

    • P - The Presentation

    • F - Finding Jesus in the Temple

  • S - Sorrowful

    • AG - The Agony in the Garden

    • SP - The Scourging at the Pillar

    • CT - The Crowning with Thorns

    • CC - The Carrying of the Cross

    • CJ - The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus

  • L - Luminous

    • B - The Baptism of the Lord

    • W - The Wedding in Cana

    • P - The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God

    • T - The Transfiguration

    • E - The Institution of the Eucharist

The Prayers

SOTC - The Sign of the Cross

Use your hand to draw a cross symbol on your body.
Take your right hand and touch your forehead, saying “In the name of the Father.”
Move your hand to the chest or stomach area, saying “and of the Son.”
Move your hand to the left shoulder and then the right shoulder, while saying “and of the Holy Spirit.”
Conclude by saying “Amen.”

AC - Apostles’ Creed

I believe in God,
the Father almighty,
Creator of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died and was buried;
he descended into hell;
on the third day he rose again from the dead;
he ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty;
from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting.
Amen.

OF - Our Father

Our Father, Who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy Name. 
Thy Kingdom come. 
Thy Will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread. 
And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. 
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Amen.

HM - Hail Mary

Hail, Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

GB - Glory Be

Glory be to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.

FP - Fatima Prayer

O my Jesus,
forgive us our sins,
save us from the fires of hell,
and lead all souls to heaven,
especially those most in need of Thy mercy.
Amen.

HHQ - Hail Holy Queen

Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy,our life, our sweetness and our hope.
To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve.
To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.
Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us,
and after this our exile
show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.
Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God,
that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Amen.

CP - Concluding Prayer

Let us pray.
O God, whose only begotten Son,
by His life, death, and resurrection,
has purchased for us the rewards of eternal life,
grant, we beseech Thee,
that meditating upon these mysteries of the Most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
we may imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise,
through the same Christ our Lord.
Amen.