Does reciting a Rosary bring you closer to God or to Mary?

No. Most people who use the Rosary believe that the practice originated with Christianity. However, historical evidence discloses that the practice of reciting prayers and counting them on a string of beads predated the beginning of Christianity. Commenting on the origin of the Rosary, The World Book Encyclopedia reports: “Prayer beads are of ancient origin, and were probably first used by the Buddhists. Both Buddhists and Muslims make use of them in their prayers. Early forms of praying with a rosary began in Christianity during the Middle Ages, but became widespread only in the 1400’s and 1500’s.” The Catholic Encyclopedia acknowledges that prayer beads were universally familiar to non-Christians for centuries and were in use long before the Catholic Church adopted the Rosary.

Diccionario Enciclopédico Hispano-Americano states: “Similar beads are in use in Islamic, Lamaist and Buddhist worship.” Indeed, the Encyclopedia of Religion and Religions notes: “It has been suggested that the Mohammedans derived the Rosary from the Buddhists, and the Christians from the Mohammedans at the time of the Crusades.”

Some argue that the rosary merely serves as a memory aid when the repetition of a number of prayers is required.

But what does the bible say?

When a disciple asked for instruction regarding prayer, Jesus did not refuse to give it to him. According to Luke 11:2-4, he replied: “When you pray, say: Father, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.” (Catholic Douay Version) This is commonly known as the Lord’s Prayer. It conveys a world of information.

For one thing, the very first word tells us to whom our prayers must be addressed—to our Father. Notice that Jesus made no room whatsoever for praying to some other person, image, “saint,” or even to him. After all, God had declared: “I will not give my glory to another, nor my praise to graven things.” (Isaiah 42:8, Dy) Prayers directed to anything or anyone other than our heavenly Father are therefore not heard by him, no matter how sincere the worshiper may be. In the Bible, only God is called the “Hearer of prayer.”—Psalm 65:2.

Many who pray to Mary have been taught that blessings can be gained by the repetition of set formulas—prayers such as the Hail Mary, Our Father, and others. For Catholics, “the most widespread form of Marian devotion [that is, devotion to Mary] is without doubt the rosary,” says the book Symbols of Catholicism. The rosary is a religious exercise in honour of the Virgin Mary. The term also refers to the string of beads used to count prayers. “Five sets of ten beads, separated by an individual bead,” explains the same book, “are an invitation to fifty recitations of ‘Hail Mary’, five of ‘Our Father’, and five of ‘Glory be to the Father.’” Does God listen with favour to the devout recitation of the rosary?

Again, the instructions that Jesus gave to his disciples provide us with an authoritative answer. “When praying, do not say the same things over and over again, just as the people of the nations do,” he said, “for they imagine they will get a hearing for their use of many words.” (Matthew 6:7) So Jesus specifically told his followers to avoid repeating set formulas in their prayers.

‘But didn’t Jesus teach his disciples to repeat the Our Father, which is part of the rosary?’ It is to be acknowledged that Jesus provided a model prayer, which has come to be known as the Our Father, or the Lord’s Prayer. We should note, however, that he did so immediately after giving the above warning against saying “the same things over and over again.” That Jesus did not intend for the model prayer to be repeated by rote is also evident from differences in his expressions in the two recorded instances in which he taught his disciples to pray. (Matthew 6:9-15; Luke 11:2-4) The ideas Jesus expressed on those occasions were similar, but his words were not the same. This leads us to the conclusion that Jesus was simply providing models or examples of how his followers can pray and of what they can appropriately pray for. Most important, his words indicated who should be the recipient of prayer.

Therefore there is no scriptural basis for the use of Rosary

"To me, it brings you closer to Mary."

If that's the case, then you're not praying it correctly. The Rosary is a meditation on events in the lives of Jesus and Mary, not just a string of repetitive prayers. Its purpose is to deepen our faith by reminding us of all that our Savior endured for our salvation. Praying the Rosary requires an honest look at our own lives and the things that are displeasing to God.

The Rosary also gives us a clearer picture of the most beautiful Christian role model anyone could ask for: our blessed Mother. We look at her life, and we see her love, courage, loyalty, compassion, and life of prayer -- all focused on Jesus.

It comes as no surprise to me that most Protestants don't want anything to do with the Rosary. It requires absolute honesty and the willingness to be conformed to the image of Christ in His sufferings.

Two things that have never been particularly popular with Protestants.

It brings us closer to God, that is what the Rosary is about. We just ask Mary for her prayers and we can only be brought closer to God from that.

God

Both, if you do it with your head bowed near the edge of a shark tank with no rails. I could have used more examples but you get the picture.

we're all going to heaven lads waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyy!

Neither

no