The duration of shaking that resulted in the catastrophic damage caused by the Kobe Earthquake was less than 20 seconds. However, the intensity of shaking experienced in the urban Kobe area was so great that the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) had to redefine the seismic intensity level of 7 to incorporate the severity of the damage seen in and around the city of Kobe. Due to the huge impact this earthquake had on human lives, the societal system, infrastructures, economy, etc., extensive studies have been conducted, not only in seismic and earthquake engineering fields but also in social sciences and other multidisciplinary fields, to understand the cause of the damage and also to provide tools & solutions to reduce future seismic risk when such strong earthquakes occur. Examples of seismic and earthquake engineering studies are given below to illustrate how they can help in understanding the cause of the damage