The Essenes are an interesting study. For those that don't know who they are, they, as Josephus the Jewish Historian described, as one of the 3 sects in "Jewish Philosophy". Theyre responsible for the Dead Sea Scrolls.
What's interesting is their master was "the Teacher of Righteousness". There isnt much known about this person, but there are scattered Christian and Talmud references to this person in antiquity as a "mircale worker" named Yeishu ha Notzri... or Jesus/Jesua ben Pantera/Pentera/Pandera/Pandira [of course all depending on translation]. This person has said to be have an influence on the Essenes movement. Though if he is the master is still up in the air. Just not enough material.
If Yeishu really is "the Teacher of Righteousness", this would answer a lot of scholarly questions about the scattered references. Origen actually speaks about him in his rebuttal to Celsus when Celsus claims that he heard from a friend that Jesus ben Pantera was born of a woman named Mary who was raped by a Roman soldier named Pantera. Scholars now see this as a legend, but back in the 1st and 2nd century, it may have been seen as fact to some. There is also Talmudic reference to Yeishu. In the pristine version, it is said the Yeishu is the illegitimate son of a woman name Mary Magdala. It is said that he traveled around doing miracle work. He was considered by the temple authorities of the time to be a trouble making heretic, and when they had finally had enough of him, they put him on trial. Scholars find all this this interesting especially since the author of the Gospel of Mark never mentions Jesus' origin or Joseph.
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My understanding is Joseph and Mary were Essenes and that Jesus was raised among them and according to their teachings.
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The modern Essenes movement from what iver read, has no historical ties to the original movement [as stated by scholar J. Gordon Melton]. He states "
Essene material is directly derivative of two occult best-sellers--The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ, by Levi H. Dowling; and The Mystical Life of Jesus, by Rosicrucian author H. Spencer Lewis."
So i guess scholars try to say it's the other way around. That there was a figure by the name of Jesus who influenced the Essenes and Christian movement.
*edit*
sorry if my thoughts seem a little scattered. im in a hurry to get somewhere and i wanted to respond with as much info as i could.