By praying the Rosary,doesn't it seem that we are placing Mother Mary higher than God. since the 'Hail Mary' far outnumbers the 'Our Father'and 'Glory Be'?

Of course, our devotion must be to God the Father through Jesus Christ. However, the intercession of our Mother Mary is to take us to Jesus Christ and to God the Father. As John Paul II said,"To Jesus to Mary". Her intercession is not independent of Jesus Christ,like in the normal family the role of the mother is not separated(or should not be) from the one of the father.We venerate the  Virgin Mary (we don't adore her, we adore only God) because she is the Mother of God and she wants us to be with him. Besides, the prayer "Hail Mary" is almost all taken from the Gospel,which, along with the tradition of the Church, is the    source of Jesus Christ's teaching, and we glorify her for the (fruit of thine womb 'Jesus, who is the center of this prayer. Ask the Virgin  Mary to help you to know Jesus Christ better and  she will do it.         

During the season of Lent should we say the Sorrowful Mysteries every day?Or we can say all the mysteries like we normally do?

During Lent we can either recite only the Sorrowful Mysteries or as usual all the Mysteries.The Rosary is a private prayer,so there is no official rule from the Church about it. Personally, I prefer to say all the Mysteries as usual because we have to contemplate on the whole life of Jesus and not only on    one part of it. Even during Lent, we should meditate on his birth and other aspects of his life.The mystery of Jesus has to be concentrated in complete vision, with the help of all the mysteries and at all times of the year.

MEDITATION

Is a prayerful quest engaging thought , imagination, emotion, and desire.Through meditation, the mind seeks to understand the why and how of the Christian life, in order to adhere and respond to what the Lord is asking. It is a question of acting truthfully in order to come into the light: "Lord, what do you want me to do?" If is a time to let God speak to us! We are helped in our meditation by books, the Sacred Scriptures, holy icons, liturgical texts, writings of the spiritual fathers and other works of spirituality. The Rosary as a form of prayerful reflection is of great value in the knowledge of the Mysteries of our Lord Jesus.

WHAT IS THE CONTEMPLATIVE PRAYER?

St. Teresa the great mystic says: "Contemplative prayer in my opinion is nothing else than a close sharing between friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with him who know loves us." Contemplative prayer is the poor and humble surrender to the loving will of the Father in ever deeper union with his beloved Son. In this inner prayer we can still meditate, but our attention  is fixed on the Lord himself. "I look at him and he looks at me": this is what St. John Vianney used to say while praying before the tabernacle. Contemplative prayer is is the pre-eminently intense time of prayer. In it the Father strengthens our inner being with power through his Spirit that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith and we may be rooted in love. In contemplation, the Holy trinity conforms man to his likeness.We come to know God in an ever more living and intimate manner which results in a closer and more fruitful union with him. 

[See CCC 2700-2724 ]

What is better: to pray or to meditate?

To arrive at perfection,says St. Bernard, we must meditate and pray: by meditation we see what we want; by prayer we receive what we want. Some people spend a great deal of time in reading and in meditating, but pay but little attention to prayer. there is no doubt that spiritual reading and meditation on the eternal truths, are very useful things, "but," says  St Augustine, "it is of much more use to pray." By reading and meditating we learn our duty; but by prayer we obtain the grace to do it."It is better to pray than to read: by reading we know what we ought to do; by prayer we receive what we ask." What is the use of knowing our duty, and then not doing it, but to make sure us more guilty in God's sight? We may read and meditate as we like, but we shall never satisfy our obligations, unless we ask of God the grace to fulfill them.                                                                                                          

Does Yoga Help Meditation?

The truth is that yoga is a system of Hindu philosophy which includes strict spiritual discipline, body harmony and the releasing of self-healing, energies to gain control over the forces of one's own being to attain union with the deity or the universal spirit. Mind-emptying techniques are not Christian prayer. This  type of prayer makes no sense in Christianity. There are also dangers involved in going into altered levels of consciousness.

The Catholic Church rejects nothing which is true and holy in other religions.She has sincere respect for their rules and teachings. However, she proclaims and must ever proclaim Christ, 'the way, the truth,and the life', in whom God has revealed himself, and in whom men find the fullness of religious life.

As Christians, we are not to practice non- Christian religions or mix in with ours (syncretism). When we practice syncretism, the line between truth and error becomes blurred. the pleasant experiences that result from these techniques can gradually start to replace the sacraments, and a person can loose sight of God as creator and Savior. The Lord loves people of all faiths. However, he wants us, as Christians, to look for opportunities to bring them to the True Faith.

The Vatican has released a document: "Jesus Christ, the Bearer of the Water and Life: A Christian Reflection on the New Age." which specifically identifies the following as New Age movements: Zen,Yoga, Enneagram, Wicca, the Higher Self, the True Self, ALC's, the "god within" and TM (Trascendental Meditation). Many of these beliefs or practices have made their way into personality development programs and workshops. Catholics attend these events trusting them to be good programs, However, the Vatican document states that these new age beliefs and  practices cannot be accepted by those who are faithful to Christ and his Church. They contain grave error, and their beliefs are contrary to the Catholic faith.