Well yes and no. The problem in giving you a definitive answer about the goals and beliefs of Hinduism as a whole is that there are far too many differing interpretations and schools of thought to really pinpoint something that every Hindu necessarily believes. (Hell even reincarnation is up for debate in Hinduism.) But I can tell you what I was taught by my Hindu mother.
Okay so essentially you have what's called "Samsara." This is the endless cycle of death and rebirth. Now in Hinduism there are 4 main aims of the human life. These four aims combined go towards what's called "Moksha" which essentially means escaping the cycle. Samsara is actually one of them. The idea is that one is ignorant of their true self, often referred to as "Ego Consciousness." Thus one is confined to the cycle of Rebirth and death until they can "realize" themselves as you put it. The grounding of Karma is similar I agree. But Karma is merely a catalyst for Samsara and grounds you through desire rather than actively restraining your real self. Free will comes into play and you have to actively avoid bad karma in order to help you rise above the cycle, but this alone will not allow you to achieve Moksha. Karma is merely the grounding force and merely raising your Karma to "very good" or bettering it, does not automatically lead one to self realization. It's just one of the steps to achieve such a goal.
Then you have Dharma, which doesn't have an English word equivalent, sorry. Dharma relates to virtues and ethics. In a sense to try to attain Dharma is to try to live a very virtuous and "good" life. In essence anyway.
Then there's Artha, which when translated roughly means "meaning of life" or something similar. This relates to the physical/material world. Essentially this is about your goals and purpose in this world. So things like Financial security for breadwinners of the family might be one of your goals.
Then comes Karma. Karma is actually related to emotional, spiritual and sensual fulfillment. Some might argue that sexual fulfillment is a part of karma as well (provided you are already married, of course.) The idea of Karma in Hinduism is that your intentional thoughts, words and actions define you as a person. Good deeds will result in rewards, in either the next life or perhaps even goes towards the "escape" so to speak. Bad deeds will result in punishment, in either your current life or the next (for Samsara always carries with it the seeds of your Karmic history.) Interestingly, there is an idea that apathetic or disinterested actions do not have the same Karmic consequences as intentional or purposeful actions/thoughts. In Hinduism, though, your actions, thoughts and words specifically carry the consequences of Karma, not anyone else. You bear the brunt for all of your own Karmic consequences, not anyone else. So the idea of other people hurting your specific Karma or pinpointing the negatives (either yours or other people's) in order to specifically affect your Karma is not actually a thing in Hinduism. The only exception being that it is actually bad karma on yourself if you lead or influence others to go down a bad path. And any of the bad actions done under your instruction/influence reflects badly on your Karma, not necessarily on the one instructed.
This is where names actually arise in Hinduism. In the Indian culture it is usually believed that the name you give to a child will ultimately influence their personality and indeed themselves as a person. So you will often find people with names that have a very special and auspicious meaning to their parents religion. For example in Hinduism Swastika is actually a relatively popular name. This is because the Swastika in Hinduism is a very auspicious and Holy symbol. Used to symbolize peace and prosperity, the Sun God and even the name Swastika (which is Sanskrit) roughly translates into "To be one of good fortune."These sorts of names are chosen in order to try and influence good Karma, Dharma and Artha on your child/ren.
Now again, the specific definitions and what these 4 goals mean to a Hindu will vary depending on a lot of factors. So all I did was try to simplify them as much as I could. And I am, what I refer to as a, "Diluted Hindu." So make of that what you will.
Now the idea of the Deity. It is indeed true that one does not need to accept any specific Deity or really any Deity at all to become a Hindu (there are atheistic Hindus after all.) But that does not mean that there are no specific Deities in the Hindu religion. There is the Supreme Godhead. Either Brahma, Vishnu or Krishna (or Shiva) depending on what sect or school of thought you ascribe to. (To me, it's all just semantics anyway, but whatever.) Then you have the various manifestations or Avatars of the Godhead. Rama, Kali, Sita, Narayan, Hunumanji, Durga etc. Now of course there is a sort of "Hierarchy" of the various incarnations. But that will take too long to explain and indeed will differ from Hindu to Hindu. There are even Demons in Hinduism. The more superstitious Hindu will seek to escape their evil influence and indeed try to avoid their evil presence. (My Mother was particularly concerned about the "evil spirits" in the trees during the more windy months at home. So as a kid I had to tie up my hair if I wanted to go near large trees. lol) Though at the same time will still revere/respect them as they are a part of God's creation.
Now the idea of Hinduism as a religion is a complicated one. You see, many Hindus actually view the separate religions as nothing more than paths to reach the same destination. Many even view the other Deities as nothing more than the same Deity just called something different. As such the idea of Apostasy doesn't really exist. Nor does the idea of converting (to either Hinduism or any other religion) for many Hindus. I'm assuming that's the same in Scientology and why in both belief structures you can essentially mix and match your religious beliefs.
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