New Delhi, May 17 -- In today's world that is "on fire" from wars, economic rivalries, poverty, and environmental degradation, diplomats and scholars looked back more than 2,500 years to the teachings of Buddha for solutions.

At a discussion organised on Thursday by India at the UN on "Teachings of Gautama Buddha -- a Path to Internal and Global Peace",they had a consensus that the path to international peace starts with inner peace.

Santosh Kumar Raut, visiting professor at Harvard Divinity School, said "Let us recognize that world is in a crisis, as Buddha says, 'The world is on fire'".

The world is beset by environmental disasters, climate change, nuclear proliferation, wars, the deterioration of democratic institutions and the fabr...