Through a critical assessment of the ecological implications of the Confucian eco-perspective articulated in early Confucian texts, we will argue that, different from a commonly held interpretation that Confucian eco-perspective is simply a human-centred philosophical fusion of humanity and nature, this perspective is in fact composed of two contradictory orientations, one ren-centred (roughly anthropocentric) and the other tian-centric (nature-centric in a specific sense), which correspond generally to the two major camps of environmental philosophy in the West in the twentieth century.We will further argue that the two orientations of the Confucian eco-perspective have different yet related functions in environment protection and conservation: the tian-centred understanding establishes a metaphysical and religious framework for Confucian eco-ethical norms, in which ecological prohibitions and policies are built into the political structure, while the ren-centred orientation provides Confucians with a practical value and meaning for protecting environment.The former is the core or foundation, while the latter is the application or superstructure.In contemporary times, Confucian eco-perspective is under further development, not as a dualistic philosophy but as a theoretic framework of practical significance.Contemporary Confucians are indeed searching for the way by which the two traditionally centered orientations can be unified as one holistic perspective to provide a theoretical and practical guidance for our understanding of the human position in the universe, the harmony between humans and nature and the value of environment protection and conservation.