How do I raise my mainsail?

Steps to Raising the Mainsail
Attach the shackle to the clew in the head of the mainsail. Use pliers or a shackle knife to ensure it is tight, or vibration could release the shackle while sailing. Release or loosen the mainsheet so that wind against the rising sail does not cause resistance.

Read rest of the answer. Herein, which sail do you raise first?

The original idea is to raise the most aft sail first. If yo have a ketch or a yawl raising the mzzen sail keepsthe boat to thewind and you will be able to raise the others. Keep the mizzen tight, leave others free andthe boat will be headng the wind.

Secondly, can you sail with just the mainsail? You can definitely sail with just main or jib, but the boat likely will be out of balance and harder to steer.

Subsequently, one may also ask, what does raise the sails mean?

Normally "raising sails" means expanding them to begin sailing and lowering means packing them in in order to stop.

What is a fully battened mainsail?

Full battens: On a fully battened mainsail, the battens extend from the luff to the leech so they can project a great deal of roach. More important, full battens help maintain a more aerodynamic cross-sectional shape, and they hold this shape for the life of the sail.