There are several literary works extolling the glory of the Lord of Guruvayur. The most well known of these are  The Narayaneeyam  and Gnanappana.  Narayaneeyam in Sanskrit was written by Meppattur Narayana Bhattathiri, one of the foremost sanskrit poets and savants of Kerala and Gnanapana  was written by Poondanam Namboothiri  in Malayalam. Both are works of great literary merit having as their themes the avatars of Lord Vishnu , the expoits of Lord Krishna in His Human incarnation. Narayaneeyam contains the essence of Bhagavatam.

Srimad Narayaneeyam is the story of Lord Narayana or Vishnu.   It is a work consisting of 1036  verses, divided into 100  chapters, each chapter consisting of approximately 10 slokas. Composed by Melpathur Narayana Bhattathiri, it is a condensed version of Srimad Bhagavata Mahapuranam, which consists of 18,000 slokas authored by Veda Vyasa (Bhagavata-artha-sangraha). It is  said that the work has the blessings of Lord  Krishna or  Guruvayurappan, the presiding Deity of the shrine of Guruvayoor.

As the story goes, the author, Melpathur Narayana Bhattathiri  voluntarily  transferred onto himself, the ailment of paralysis from his Guru and relative, Trikandiyur Achuta Pisharoti ritualistically, in order to save him.  In the process, he himself became a paralytic.   He then got himself carried to the shrine at Guruvayoor where he could take shelter at the feet of Lord Krishna and get divine intervention. 

As he was continuing to suffer from excruciating pain due to his malady, he sought advice from the celebrated contemporary poet, Thunjath Ezhuthatchan, who suggested that Bhattathiri should “start with the fish”.  Bhattathiri, being quick to understand the implication of this suggestion, viz., that he should compose a hymn in praise of Lord Guruvayurappan giving an account of all His sportive incarnations beginning with the incarnation as fish (Matsya-avatara), he sat at the feet of the Lord and composed this great work, a dasakam a day, with ardent devotion.  At the end of the hundredth day, when he had completed all the one hundred dasakams, it is said that he had a glorious vision of the Lord and he was completely cured of his ailment. Bhattathiri composed Narayaneeyam when he was twenty-seven, completing it on November 27, 1587.

This work, composed in praise of Lord Krishna, and which is said to have received divine intervention at different stages, is considered to be a short and sweet substitute for Srimad Bhagavata Mahapuranam and is recited by devotees all over the world as a general prayer and also as a dose for all ailments causing impairment.  Innumerable devotees flock to the Guruvayoor temple and offer worship to the Lord, reciting this hymn of prayer in the firm hope, belief and trust that they would be cured of their ailments.